The productivity and rational-thinking crowd has long loved mental models. We memorize them. We quote them. We sprinkle them into conversations like intellectual seasoning. But here’s the inconvenient truth: very few of us actually track how we use them. Even fewer build systems to reinforce their practical application in daily life. That gap is where this tool deep dive lands.

The Problem: Theory Without a Feedback Loop

You know First Principles Thinking, Inversion, Opportunity Cost, Hanlon’s Razor, the 80/20 Rule, and the rest. But do you know if you’re actually applying them consistently? Or are they just bouncing around in your head, waiting to be summoned by a Twitter thread?

In an increasingly AI-enabled work landscape, knowing mental models isn’t enough. Systems thinking alone won’t save you. Implementation will.

Why Now: The Implementation Era

AI isn’t just a new toolset. It’s a context shifter. We’re all being asked to think faster, act more strategically, and manage complexity in real-time. It’s not just about understanding systems, but executing decisions with clarity and intention. That means our cognitive infrastructure needs reinforcing.

The Tracker: One Week to Conscious Application

I ran a simple demo: one week, one daily journal template, tracking how mental models showed up (or could have) in real-world decisions.

• A decision or scenario I encountered
• Which models I applied (or neglected)
• The outcome (or projected cost of neglect)
• Reflections on integration with MATTO

You can download the journal template here.

AI Prompt: Your On-Demand Decision Partner

Here’s the ChatGPT prompt I used daily:

“I’m going to describe a situation I encountered today. I want you to help me analyze it using the following mental models: First Principles, Inversion, Opportunity Cost, Diminishing Returns, Hanlon’s Razor, Parkinson’s Law, Loss Aversion, Switching Costs, Circle of Competence, Regret Minimization, Pareto Principle, and Game Theory. First, tell me which models are most relevant. Then, walk me through how to apply them. Then, ask me reflective questions for journaling.”

Integration with MATTO: Tracking the True Cost

In my journaling system, I use MATTO (Money, Attention, Time, Trust, Opportunity) to score decisions. After a model analysis, I tag entries with their relevant MATTO implications:

• Did I spend unnecessary attention by failing to invert?
• Did loss aversion skew my sense of opportunity?
• Was trust eroded due to ignoring second-order consequences?

Final Thought: Self-Awareness at Scale

We don’t need more models. We need mechanisms.

This is a small experiment in building them. Give it a week. Let your decisions become a training dataset. The clarity you’ll gain might just be the edge you’re looking for.

Support My Work

Support the creation of high-impact content and research. Sponsorship opportunities are available for specific topics, whitepapers, tools, or advisory insights. Learn more or contribute here: Buy Me A Coffee

 

* AI tools were used as a research assistant for this content, but human moderation and writing are also included. The included images are AI-generated.