How I sharpen my mental models over time
How I sharpen my mental models over timeBreak your own rules once in a while to understand what's true for you now, not what was true in the past.👋 Hey, it’s Wes. Welcome to my weekly newsletter where I share insights for high-performers in tech, based on 15+ years as a marketer, operator, and a16z-backed founder. I originally published a version of this essay in March 2019. Enjoy. Read time: 3 minutes One day, Seth Godin was making lunch for the altMBA HQ team in Hastings-on-Hudson, New York. Guess what was on the menu? Scallops. I’ve hated scallops since I was a kid. I said, “That looks great! I'm not a huge fan of scallops. I'll pass, but thank you.” I've responded that way dozens of times over the years. It was habitual at that point to say no to scallops. He said, “Really? Give them a try. They're fresh caught from a boutique grocer in Chelsea Market and they are delicious. Just cut a tiny piece and see if you like it. If you don't, I’m sure Alex or Willie will eat it.” The scallops were right there, and I could cut a tiny piece. So I thought, “What’s the harm? I’ll try a little.” To my surprise, it was the most drool-worthy seafood I’ve ever had. I not only finished that scallop, but had two more—and secretly hoped my coworkers wouldn’t take their share so I could eat more. So what happened there? I was 100% certain I didn’t like scallops, until I liked them. I’m sure you’ve had a similar experience of discovering one day that something you had written off wasn’t so bad after all—or was even, dare I say, good. Sometimes we think we don’t like something, or it doesn’t or won’t work for us, because we had a bad experience with it in the past. But consider this: it’s possible what you experienced was a very limited sample size of what this thing is or could be. How does this apply to sharpening your mental models? The purpose of mental models is to have shortcuts that help you make sense of a noisy world without having to think from scratch. For mental models to be useful, they should help you make smarter decisions. But the outside world is constantly changing. Your inner world is constantly changing. Something you once believed might not apply anymore. That’s why I believe you should break your own rules once in a while. You should constantly be testing your rules, boundaries, hunches, intuition, and hypotheses. When you test or break your own rules, there are two things that can happen:
A caveat: You should hold true to your values and avoid doing anything that hurts others. Aside from that, try to break your rules in as low-cost of a way as possible. Don’t do it in an area that’s irreversible or expensive to fix. It’s extreme to say no to an entire category forever. Remember how at one point, everyone said, “I like all kinds of music, except country”? It was just something people around me said, so I said it too. Years later, I realized country is awesome and it’s been one of my favorite genres for two decades. I’m giving non-work examples here, but you can easily see how this applies to mental models for your work, function, tactics, etc. This practice of regularly questioning my own rules and updating my hypotheses has brought many good things into my life. To be clear, from a practical perspective, I get that you can’t constantly update your mental models because the whole point of heuristics is to limit thinking. If you had to think from first principles each time, what’s the point of a rule? So you have to use your wisdom and judgment here. You can have heuristics, but hold them lightly. You should have a point of view, but stay open to changing your mind and admitting that what you know might be limited. What are some “scallops” in your life? The next time you reflexively say “no,” think about whether you could be more nuanced with your approach. You might say to yourself, “I thought X didn’t work for me. But now, I realize it could work in certain situations. Therefore, I’ll update my mental model, which should lead to better decisions over time.” If this newsletter resonates with you, here are three more ways I can help:
Thanks for being here, PS See you next Wednesday. To binge-read in the meantime, check out these essays: |
Older messages
When to disagree and commit
Wednesday, April 3, 2024
Questions to ask yourself to decide whether to keep debating, or relent. ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏
"Insecure vibes" are a self-fulfilling prophecy
Wednesday, March 27, 2024
When you feel nervous, you might give off subconscious signals that make people more suspicious. Get rid of insecure vibes—and your writing, meetings, and pitches will become stronger. ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏
Managing up: 11 principles for getting better feedback
Wednesday, March 20, 2024
The truth about why your manager isn't giving you more feedback--and what to do about it. ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏
How to get an enthusiastic yes
Wednesday, March 13, 2024
Most people suck at asking for things. Here's an easy framework for how to ask (and get a yes). ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏
How to interrupt (and be interrupted) respectfully in the workplace
Wednesday, March 6, 2024
Your goal is to get a shared understanding—not to deliver your full monologue. Don't run out of time for the important stuff. ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏
You Might Also Like
The Pizza Trade, Indian Milk, Spicy Fast 🍕
Tuesday, May 21, 2024
And making friends with a former foe aka AI View this email in your browser Making Friends With a Former Foe Those most at risk of being replaced by generative AI are becoming its biggest proponents.
OpenAI loses its voice
Tuesday, May 21, 2024
The company hasn't been the same since Sam Altman's return — and its treatment of Scarlett Johansson should worry everyone Platformer Platformer OpenAI loses its voice By Casey Newton • 20 May
#180 | Spatial Computing, Energy Dilemma, AI Spending Patterns, & more
Monday, May 20, 2024
May 13–20th | Insights from Equal, Madrona, Bessemer, Greylock, Chamath, and others ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏
Chatting With Her - The ChatGPT App on Mac
Monday, May 20, 2024
Tomasz Tunguz Venture Capitalist If you were forwarded this newsletter, and you'd like to receive it in the future, subscribe here. Chatting With Her - The ChatGPT App on Mac For the past few
📂 How to test new pricing (and migrate legacy pricing)
Monday, May 20, 2024
Today's newsletter is proudly supported by xFusion 🎉 A few years ago I referred one of my consulting clients, SavvyCal, to xFusion to get help with customer support. And after seeing
When to Raise a Series A? 16 Silicon Valley Startups Raised $622.9M Last Week
Monday, May 20, 2024
💰 Sigma Computing Raised $200M Series D 💰 Top Universities For Funded Founders 🔢 Social Capital Fund Return (2011-2023) 👑 Palmer Luckey Wants to Be Silicon Valley's War King ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏
🦄 3D bioprinting for customizable tissue
Monday, May 20, 2024
FoldInk is building material, called bioinks, which are used to print real tissue.
NEW: state of AI
Monday, May 20, 2024
funding and deal size jumps, M&A exits drop, and six new unicorns join the club The State of AI Take a deeper look Hi there, Our newest State of AI Report is out. Spoiler: AI funding hit a 4-
How the customized learning pathway works
Monday, May 20, 2024
This is life-changing Hi , Many are asking how the customized learning pathway inside foundr+ works so I wanted to share. Here's how it works: Initial Assessment: When you first log in, you'll
April 2024 updates, new product!
Monday, May 20, 2024
Traveled to Bali and Sydney, some updates on Typing Mind, and a new product. ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏