Linear Causality Mental Model - and How to Escape it with AI

We’ve been trained to love simple stories. One cause, one effect. One idea that changed everything. But the real world doesn’t work that way.

In this video, we explore the mental model behind this illusion: **linear causality**. It’s the hidden trap in success stories, failures, leadership advice, and news headlines — and it’s shaping how we judge reality without realizing it.

This 5-minute breakdown explores:
– Why our brain is wired to crave clean, linear stories
– How linear causality leads to bad decisions and oversimplified solutions
– How to spot it in everyday life (phrase traps, hero-villain framing, oversimplified hacks)
– And how to use AI to break the pattern and start thinking in systems

🧠 *AI Prompts to Unfold Complexity* (mentioned in video):
1. The first one helps you to judge your own linear causality:
"I think [cause] led to [outcome]. I’m trying to understand what non-obvious causes or feedback loops might also be influencing this, beyond what I initially assumed."
2. The second one helps you to judge what you are exposed to:
"I’ve been told that [describe situation] lead to [describe outcome]. Can you break down [event or outcome] as a system. What interconnected factors, delayed effects, or hidden variables could be shaping this outcome? Avoid explaining it as a single cause."

👉 Subscribe for the full *Mental Models and Systems Thinking* series, where we unpack the hidden models shaping our world and our future.

Systems Thinking Playlist:    • System Thinking Series  
Paradigms Playlist:    • Paradigm Shifts Explained  

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