Limited By Our Mental Models

Limited by Individual's Library of Mental Models

I wrote this one frustrated sitting on the boarding gate benches after a flight delay. It might be all over the place. In this one, I used the word model to refer to frameworks, models, and concepts. We all have orientation based on models that are stored in our brains. Have you heard people talk about finding your true north? Yes, based on the models in our minds, we are likely to think that we have found our true north when we do what society expects. However, true north or orientation is something one creates for himself, one of those untypical routes. 

Mental models have a lot to do with exposure, that is, things you have come across presented to you or experienced in your life. Mental models are like the flat earth and spherical earth models. Today we still have people who call themselves flat-earthers, meaning they are operating using a model from the BCs. Our brains have many models: primal, ancient, medieval, and new (civilised or 20th/21st century). The update of these models to the public came about because new technologies like the atomic model came about because instruments were used to smash the atoms together. Even though we knew certain traits or features were inherited, DNA came about in the 1950s and proved that we are a big USB, built on sequences of proteins (the data).

The more new models one is exposed to, the better. It provides a repository of mental awareness and orientation and enhanced context awareness. EQ, IQ, and SQ (Intelligences) are all mental models for a person's psyche and understanding of the world and the agents around them. Understanding human agents is a difficult task because humans are social animals with a great ability to pretend; hence, having psychological or social sciences models can help immensely; models like the Dunning-Kruger effect, Maslow's hierarchy of needs, etc., can help understand individuals in the working or any new environment they find themselves in. Exposure is very important. The more exposed you are, the wider and better your mental models. Mental models are also very helpful to those in management roles; models include the Cynefin framework, Nudge model, PDCA, etc. I observe that managers without management models often miss quick wins or low-hanging fruits because they make amateur mistakes. A combination of a library of these models gives one a sense of a fully defined and known self.

Language models, some languages don't have certain vowels and numbers, meaning that such a tribe is limited in certain aspects of life, no wonder why English keeps on growing and adopting new terms. The limiting abilities of language are seen well in natural language processing, a form of artificial intelligence. African languages like Xitsonga are currently not growing because no one is creating new words, meaning that such a language will die off sooner than people realise.

The Bible, Quoran, Confucious, etc., influence life orientation on the religious front. Others put these models before everything else, including themselves and humility. In the case of spirituality, we should put humility before everything else. That is, despite religion being closer to us than our skins.

Reading books helps refine the models and learn new models and phenomena. Novels help with storytelling, the ability to visualise things, and learning new terms. Although difficult, it is very fulfilling to read a book on a subject you are not interested in, like I read a marketing book called Purple Cow and enjoyed it. It has nothing to do with Engineering or Science, just pure marketing. Now I am reading "Things Hidden Since the Foundation of the World", a psychoanalysis book which is a blast. This results in the expansion of one's lenses. Like an iPhone with 3 cameras has a wider view than just a single lens. The more books one reads, the more models and sociable one gets. And can discuss any topic. You can blend in any room, like knowing certain famous artists and musicians help.

Those who show knowledge of mental models appear to be smarter and more learned. They tend to get honest leadership positions, not affirmative action positions. Unfortunately, you don't need a brain or models to be beneficial in today's world/society. Banal platitudes are mental models but weak ones since they have hardly ever been verified. They are just cliques. Today's cliques include climate change, renewables, diversity, equality/equity, etc.; playing with these words and models is a great selling point.

School teaches us many models (Our sad schooling), and we aim to apply them in the real world. Unfortunately, we forget all those models the moment we step out of the exam room. Although not completely useless, it is futile to learn to forget. That's why people go to school to learn the needs and wants of the financial model and later mess up the basics by making bad financial decisions. Others learn many business models in an MBA class and then go blank when the push comes to shave in the real world. As a result, people get PMP certifications and fail to plan simple personal and time management tasks.

We are living in 2022AD, Lol; Yes, writing 2022 this way has a certain ring to it. This year is 2022AD, but because of mental models, some people are still in the BCs, others in medieval times, and others in the middle ages. What's more apparent is people having romantic relationship models of the pre-1990AD in 2022AD. Things have changed ad models need to be updated, just like we update software (Apps) on our phones. The only way to update your mental models after your schooling years is to read books, blogs, Tweets, News, Watch podcasts, Youtube videos, etc., something that feeds new edutainment. Alternatively, one can go back to school to do postgrad, short courses, or boot camps.

In summary, our mental models describe who we are and how we think of ourselves and others. In 2022AD, it is better to get frequent updates, or you'll be left behind behind.