GENCO MEMO: May 24, 2024
Today is Framework Friday and here are some resources about frameworks to explore as you go into this holiday weekend.
Greetings.
Frameworks are a secret ingredient to excelling past what you think you can.
In a jury trial earlier this year, I asked a police investigator:
"Q: You're responsible for collecting the evidence for this jury?
A: Yes.
Q: And it's your job to make sure the evidence is complete?
A: Yes.
Q: That it's consistent?
A: Uh huh.
Q: Consistent with other evidence in the case?
A: Yes.
Q: And that its credible, right?
A: Right.
Q: We could think of those as the "Three Cs" of evaluating evidence: whether it's complete, consistent, credible, fair?
A: That's fair.
Q: So that the jury can reach the correct conclusion about the evidence, right?
A: Right.
Q: Because, as an investigator, you know that if the evidence is not complete, consistent, or credible, the jury could reach the wrong conclusion, make sense?
A: Yes.
Q: Let's look at the evidence you collected in this case, OK?
A: OK."
That's an example of using a framework to focus the cross-examination and shape the jurors thinking on how to evaluate the evidence in the case.
I was able to simplify a complex topic, structure the information into three manageable categories, and focus attention on three qualitative measures.
You can also see that at the end, I added the consequences of reaching the “wrong conclusion” to raise the stakes for the jury.
Going into this weekend, I'm sharing three videos and one library excerpt to help you explore this idea of frameworks so you can use it in what you do.
VIDEO #1: This video gives a good summary of how to approach Framework Thinking. Vicky Zhao, a specialist in frameworks I follow on YouTube, gives a good 4-minute overview of the three goals of frameworks.
Here is a bonus video that provides basic frameworks to start with.
VIDEO #2: Here is a 12-minute video from Farnam Street that explains nine basic mental models (frameworks) that are immediately usable. As a side note, this creator has an excellent website and series of books on this topic.
VIDEO #3: Here is a 10-minute video from Lex Fridman showing an excerpt of his interview with Elon Musk discussing his First Principles framework for innovative problem solving.
LIBRARY EXCERPT: Here is an excerpt from my library that explains a First Principles framework for looking at arguments. Going back to Aristotle, all issues come down to resolving 1) who or what to blame, 2) which value outweighs another, and 3) a choice of future action.
That is all.
Have a great weekend and talk to you next week.