Thought Experiment
The thought experiment mental model can help you think clearly by solving difficult problems. The thought experiment encourages speculation. What’s more, it forces people to alter their paradigms. Instead of reasoning like other people, thought experiment model pushes you out of your comfort zone. As a result, it forces you to ask yourself rhetorical questions that are complex. Through this style of thinking, it unveils the things that you don’t know and some of which you know.
The advantage gained in using the thought experiment is that it encourages innovative ideas by pushing you beyond your thinking boundaries. Therefore, you will not be limited to the things that you already know. One major challenge with this mental model is that it appears impractical. Nevertheless, scholars believe that it can be used theoretically.
BATNA
This mental model can help you during negotiations. Normally, there are instances when negotiations reach a deadlock. This is a situation whereby parties cannot agree on a particular issue. In such cases, there should be an ideal alternative since parties negotiating cannot agree.
It is worth noting that BATNA should be taken into consideration even before engaging in negotiations. Before entering into negotiations with any individual, you should be aware of your BATNA. The benefit that you gain here is that:
● It gives you the best alternative in case you fail to agree.
● It gives you an upper hand during negotiation since you will have negotiation power.
● It helps you dictate your reservation point. This is the lowest price that you can accept in the deal.
Therefore, knowing your BATNA will help you to think clearly when negotiating with people. Going into negotiations without BATNA will only influence you to settle for anything just to close the deal. This is not a smart way of making decisions.
