5 Mental Models That Will Take Your Leadership from Good to Great
The Cognitive Tools You Need In Your Backpack
There are good leaders. And then there are great leaders.
We all know that managers need to show up, manage a team, and make decisions.
But leadership is much more than that. Leaders need to manage stressful situations, navigate ambiguity, and drive results while providing the support and growth their teams need.
According to a 2019 McKinsey study, companies with high-performing leaders are 1.9 times more likely to deliver above-average financial performance. However, the hard reality is that many leaders struggle when presented with high-pressure situations. A survey by Harvard Business Review found that 87% of executives admit that they face decision fatigue.
So, the key differentiator between good leaders and great leaders is how they think. That’s where mental models come in. Mental models are powerful tools that leaders can use to shape how they approach problems, and make decisions.
In this article, I’ll share five mental models that can take your leadership from good to great. These are the same tools that some of the world’s most successful leaders use to cut through chaos, lead with clarity, and get results.
Let’s dive in.
1. First Principles Thinking: Get to the Root
What’s the biggest problem you’re facing right now as a leader? Is it something that feels overwhelming, like it has layers upon layers of complexity?
Most problems can seem complicated, but the secret to solving them lies in breaking them down to their most basic elements. That’s where First Principles Thinking comes in.
What is First Principles Thinking?
At its core, first principles thinking is about stripping down a problem or challenge to its fundamental pieces.
Instead of asking, “How do I solve this problem”, you should ask, “What is this problem really made of?”
Did you know that Elon Musk famously applied this mental model when he questioned the cost of rockets, which eventually led to the creation of Space X? Instead of accepting that rockets were expensive because “they always have been,” he asked, “What are the core components of a rocket, and how can we make them cheaper?”
Why Does It Matter?
As a leader, if you adopt first principles thinking it can give you a fresh perspective and uncover solutions that you may otherwise never discover. By focusing on the most fundamental truths of a problem, you eliminate unnecessary complexity and get to the root of the issue. This allows you to focus on more creative and innovation approaches to solving problems.
How to Apply It
Think about a process in your team that has been in place for years. Do people just follow it because it’s how things have always been done? Now, try this: break that process down into steps and ask “What is the purpose of this step?” For example, if your team has always been following the Waterfall model for execution, you may find that there are potential issues with the steps and opportunities for your team to challenge long-held assumptions and improve the process.
As another example, let’s say your team struggles with hitting deadlines. Instead of just assuming that more time or more resources will fix the problem (which most managers would do), ask yourself: What are the core reasons we’re missing deadlines? Is it a communication issue? A resource allocation problem? Or is it something deeper, like a mismatch between task complexity and team skills?
Ask Yourself:
Am I solving this problem based on assumptions or fundamental truths?
Have I questioned the way things have always been done in my team?
When you start thinking in first principles, you’ll be surprised at how many “complex” problems suddenly become more manageable — and even solvable. Long-held assumptions will suddenly get exposed, and lead to a more creative and innovative solution.
2. Inversion: Think Backward to Move Forward
As humans, we are typically motivated to put our energies towards things we should do.
Have you ever taken a step back and thought about what not to do? It’s a common trap for leaders — we tend to focus so heavily on success that we fail to see potential pitfalls. That’s where Inversion comes in.
What is Inversion?
Inversion is the idea of thinking backward. Instead of asking, “How do we achieve success?” you ask, “How do we avoid failure?”
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