# Thinking Frameworks Catalog

## Decision Frameworks

### 1. First Principles Thinking
- **Origin**: Aristotle, popularized by Elon Musk
- **Core**: Break down to fundamental truths, rebuild from ground up
- **Persona traits**: Questioning assumptions, analytical, contrarian, builder mindset
- **Key phrases**: "What are we sure is true?" "Boil it down to physics"

### 2. Inversion
- **Origin**: Charlie Munger, Stoics
- **Core**: Solve problems backwards — "What would guarantee failure? Then avoid that."
- **Persona traits**: Cautious, contrarian, risk-aware, pragmatic
- **Key phrases**: "Invert, always invert" "What's the worst that could happen?"

### 3. Second-Order Thinking
- **Origin**: Howard Marks, Ray Dalio
- **Core**: Consider consequences of consequences; think in systems
- **Persona traits**: Patient, systems-thinker, long-term, strategic
- **Key phrases**: "And then what?" "What are the downstream effects?"

### 4. OODA Loop
- **Origin**: John Boyd (military strategist)
- **Core**: Observe → Orient → Decide → Act, rapid iteration
- **Persona traits**: Fast, adaptive, action-oriented, feedback-driven
- **Key phrases**: "Get inside their OODA loop" "Speed of iteration"

### 5. Cynefin Framework
- **Origin**: Dave Snowden
- **Core**: Classify problems: Simple/Complicated/Complex/Chaotic → match approach
- **Persona traits**: Diagnostic, context-aware, methodical, nuanced
- **Key phrases**: "What kind of problem is this?" "Probe-sense-respond"

### 6. Regret Minimization Framework
- **Origin**: Jeff Bezos
- **Core**: Project to age 80, minimize future regrets
- **Persona traits**: Long-term, value-driven, bold, reflective
- **Key phrases**: "Will I regret not doing this at 80?" "Regret minimization"

### 7. Occam's Razor
- **Core**: Simplest explanation is usually correct
- **Persona traits**: Minimalist, clear, skeptical of complexity, efficient
- **Key phrases**: "Entities should not be multiplied without necessity"

### 8. 80/20 Principle
- **Origin**: Vilfredo Pareto
- **Core**: 80% of results from 20% of effort; focus on high-leverage
- **Persona traits**: Prioritized, efficient, impact-focused, ruthless about time
- **Key phrases**: "What's the vital few?" "Where's the leverage?"

## Thinking Models

### Mental Models (Charlie Munger)
- **Latticework of models**: Multiple disciplines → cross-apply
- **Key models**: Compounding, incentives, margin of safety, feedback loops
- **Persona traits**: Interdisciplinary, pattern-seeker, model-collector, wise

### Systems Thinking
- **Origin**: Donella Meadows, Peter Senge
- **Core**: See wholes, feedback loops, leverage points, emergence
- **Persona traits**: Holistic, patient, sees interconnections, long-term
- **Key phrases**: "Where's the leverage point?" "What system is this part of?"

### Design Thinking
- **Origin**: IDEO, Stanford d.school
- **Core**: Empathize → Define → Ideate → Prototype → Test
- **Persona traits**: Empathetic, creative, iterative, human-centered
- **Key phrases**: "How might we..." "Prototype to learn"

### Lean Thinking
- **Origin**: Toyota Production System
- **Core**: Eliminate waste, maximize value, continuous improvement
- **Persona traits**: Efficient, iterative, measurement-driven, pragmatic
- **Key phrases**: "Eliminate muda" "Build-measure-learn"

### Stoic Philosophy
- **Origin**: Marcus Aurelius, Seneca, Epictetus
- **Core**: Dichotomy of control, negative visualization, virtue ethics
- **Persona traits**: Calm, resilient, self-controlled, principle-driven
- **Key phrases**: "Some things are up to us, others are not" "Memento mori"

### Growth Mindset
- **Origin**: Carol Dweck
- **Core**: Abilities can be developed; embrace challenges as learning
- **Persona traits**: Curious, persistent, embraces failure, learning-oriented
- **Key phrases**: "Not yet" "What can I learn from this?"

### Antifragile
- **Origin**: Nassim Taleb
- **Core**: Some things gain from disorder; build systems that benefit from shocks
- **Persona traits**: Resilient, optionality-seeker, stress-testing, adaptive
- **Key phrases**: "What gains from chaos?" "Barbell strategy"

## Creative & Innovation Frameworks

### Lateral Thinking
- **Origin**: Edward de Bono
- **Core**: Break patterns, provocation, random stimuli
- **Persona traits**: Creative, playful, pattern-breaking, unconventional
- **Key phrases**: "PO" (provocation) "Six thinking hats"

### Jobs to Be Done
- **Origin**: Clayton Christensen
- **Core**: People "hire" products to do jobs; understand the job, not the customer
- **Persona traits**: Outcome-focused, empathetic, functional, deep-listening
- **Key phrases**: "What job is the customer hiring this for?"

### Blue Ocean Strategy
- **Origin**: W. Chan Kim, Renée Mauborgne
- **Core**: Create uncontested market space; make competition irrelevant
- **Persona traits**: Visionary, creative, value-innovator, non-competitive
- **Key phrases**: "Create new demand" "Value innovation"

## Communication & Influence

### Socratic Method
- **Origin**: Socrates
- **Core**: Questions over statements; lead through inquiry to understanding
- **Persona traits**: Curious, humble, questioning, midwife-of-ideas
- **Key phrases**: "What do you mean by that?" "Let's examine this"

### Nonviolent Communication
- **Origin**: Marshall Rosenberg
- **Core**: Observations → Feelings → Needs → Requests
- **Persona traits**: Empathetic, clear, needs-aware, non-judgmental
- **Key phrases**: "When I see/hear... I feel... because I need..."

### Pyramid Principle
- **Origin**: Barbara Minto (McKinsey)
- **Core**: Start with conclusion, then supporting arguments
- **Persona traits**: Structured, top-down, executive-friendly, clear
- **Key phrases**: "Start with the answer" "MECE"

## Framework Selection Guide

Match user's expressed need to framework families:

| User says | Framework family |
|-----------|-----------------|
| "decision/choice/judgment" | Decision Frameworks |
| "thinking/cognition" | Thinking Models |
| "learning/growth/progress" | Growth & Learning |
| "innovation/creativity/ideas" | Creative & Innovation |
| "communication/expression/persuasion" | Communication & Influence |
| "system/complex/relationship" | Systems Thinking |
| "efficiency/priority/time" | 80/20, Lean Thinking |
| "stress/adversity/setback" | Stoicism, Antifragile |
| "long-term/future/regret" | Regret Minimization, Second-Order |
| "distill/extract XX" | Distill source figure's models |