[ThinkBetter](https://thinkbetter.app/) → Mental Models

# Mental Models

Mental models are thinking tools — frameworks that help you understand systems, make decisions, and solve problems. Each page below has a short explanation and real-world examples. All 14 mental models in the ThinkBetter app.

- [Hanlon's Razor](https://thinkbetter.app/mental-models/hanlons-razor.md): Never attribute to malice that which can be adequately explained by stupidity.
- [Inversion](https://thinkbetter.app/mental-models/inversion.md): Instead of considering what you need to achieve a goal, ask instead "What should I avoid doing to prevent failure?"
- [Bounded Rationality](https://thinkbetter.app/mental-models/bounded-rationality.md): Our ability to make rational decisions is limited by the information we have, cognitive constraints, and the time available.
- [Circle of Competence](https://thinkbetter.app/mental-models/circle-of-competence.md): The Circle of Competence emphasizes understanding and operating within one's areas of expertise and knowledge.
- [Occam's Razor](https://thinkbetter.app/mental-models/occams-razor.md): When presented with multiple explanations for a situation or phenomenon, the simplest one is usually the best.
- [Map is Not The Territory](https://thinkbetter.app/mental-models/map-is-not-the-territory.md): Our perception or representation of reality is not reality itself, but merely a simplified version of it, with all of its flaws.
- [Regression to the Mean](https://thinkbetter.app/mental-models/regression-to-the-mean.md): Regression to the mean is the statistical phenomenon where extreme data points are likely to be followed by more average ones.
- [Parkinson's Law](https://thinkbetter.app/mental-models/parkinsons-law.md): Work expands to fill the time available for its completion.
- [Law of Diminishing Returns](https://thinkbetter.app/mental-models/law-of-diminishing-returns.md): After a certain point, each additional unit of input results in progressively smaller increases in output.
- [Pareto Principle](https://thinkbetter.app/mental-models/pareto-principle.md): aka the 80/20 rule, says that is common for roughly 80% of results come from 20% of the input/causes.
- [Bayes' Theorem](https://thinkbetter.app/mental-models/bayes-theorem.md): Probabilities (or the likelihood of something happening) should be updated with new information as we gather it.
- [Probabilistic Thinking](https://thinkbetter.app/mental-models/probabilistic-thinking.md): Decisions or predictions are based on probabilities rather than certainties, we should therefore acknowledge the influence of randomness and uncertainty.
- [Second-Order Thinking](https://thinkbetter.app/mental-models/second-order-thinking.md): We should consider and plan for the consequences of the consequences of actions, going beyond the immediate effects.
- [Pygmalion Effect](https://thinkbetter.app/mental-models/pygmalion-effect.md): People tend to perform according to the expectations placed upon them, often fulfilling prophecies of their success or failure.

## Go deeper in ThinkBetter

The ThinkBetter app has the full Mental Models deep-dive: more examples, a quiz to test yourself, audio narration, and a weekly path that builds these ideas into a habit.

- iOS: https://apps.apple.com/app/id6459831884
- Android: https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=io.ventureship.braintricks