What Are You Really Looking For?
Charlie Munger’s mental model of “invert, always invert” is useful in so many areas of life.
I’ve usually heard it associated with decision-making strategy where you ask “What would cause failure?” or “What should I avoid?” This involves looking at the end result, thinking backward, and eliminating potential causes of failure.
But another useful area I’ve found for this model is to look at a situation in life and ask myself, “What am I really looking to get out of this situation?”
Some examples:
- Boarding a flight early: Nobody actually wants to board a flight early, even though the “better” boarding groups allow for precisely this. Why would you want to sit in that metal tube any longer than you need to? What you actually want is to get your bag in the overhead bin, and the best way to do that is to be in an early boarding group. You would think the airlines would realize this and allow us to pay for guaranteed overhead luggage storage. The true luxury is time and not needing to board early but guaranteeing an overhead space allows for more of this luxury.
- Happy hours: We used to go to happy hours at local breweries, but then realized that the desired outcome was just spending time together with friends. Instead of spending $7+ per beer at a brewery, invite friends over more often or set aside time to be together and talk.
These are just two random examples, but I think using this mental framework will help you see life more clearly and identify what you really want out of a situation.