Elon Musk is perhaps known for this mental model. Like Aristotle, Euclid, Nikola Tesla and Richard Feynman... Elon has a method to his “thinking different” madness. It’s called First principles thinking and anyone can use it. How do you use first principles ? Leave me a reply bellow, I'm curious about you :) #thinkdifferent #mindshift #innovation #creativity #entrepreneurship #success #business

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Mental Models
001 | First Principles

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What is First Principles thinking ?
A first principle is a basic assumption that cannot be
deduced any further.
Over two thousand years ago, Aristotle defined a first
principle as “the first basis from which a thing is known".
First principles thinking is a fancy way of saying :
“think like a scientist.”
Scientists don’t assume things. They start with questions like :
What are we absolutely sure is true? What has been proven?
It's the act of boiling a process down to the fundamental
parts that you know are true and building up from there.

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Why do I need it ?
Perhaps the best way to develop cutting-edge ideas is to
start by breaking things down to the fundamentals.
Even if you aren't trying to develop innovative ideas,
understanding the first principles of your field is a smart use
of your time.
Without a firm grasp of the basics, there is little chance of
mastering the details that make the difference at elite levels
of competition.
It requires you to abandon your allegiance to previous
assumptions.
This is how you learn to think for yourself.

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Ok, how do I apply it ?
In practice, you don't have to simplify every problem down to
the atomic level to get the benefits of first principles thinking.
You just need to go one or two levels deeper than most
people.
Different solutions present themselves at different layers of
abstraction.
The best way to start using first principle thinking is to
question a problem or concept until you get to the core idea
( aka no longer ask anymore questions ).
Bro tip : Ask "Why" five times, destruct to reconstruct.

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Example ?
Imagine you have three things:
A motorboat with a skier behind it
A military tank
A bicycle
Now, let's break these items down into their constituent parts:
Motorboat: motor, the hull of a boat, and a pair of skis.
Tank: metal treads, steel armor plates, and a gun.
Bicycle: handlebars, wheels, gears, and a seat.
What can you create from these individual parts?
One option is to make a snowmobile by combining the
handlebars and seat from the bike, the metal treads from the
tank, and the motor and skis from the boat.

6. Mental Models
"Every act of creation is first an act of destruction.
The urge to destruct is also a creative urge"
- Picasso
Mental models are a conduit to a Superhuman Mind.
I’m posting a new mental model every day for 100 days.
If you find my hobby cool, shoot me a dm and let's play together !