The other day I took our kids to the park early in the morning.
I define early as 8:30 a.m.
It was quite a chilly morning for late August.
As I sat on a bench watching the kids play in the quiet of the morning, I realized that I had underdressed. I had underestimated just how cold it was.
We were meeting some friends at a different park around Noon that same day, and that park had a splash pad. I thought to myself, there is no way any water-based activity is happening today.
I was wrong.
The day warmed up beyond what the good folks at The Weather Network anticipated, and not only did water activities take place, layers of clothing were also shedded for comfort.
This got me thinking about a very obvious, very simple, and yet very powerful mental model.
Temperature effects.
***
A park that felt somewhat uncomfortable to sit at if you happened to arrive at 8:30 a.m., feels perfectly comfortable to spend time in if you arrived after Noon.
An activity—visiting a splash pad—that may have seemed unthinkable in chilly weather, makes perfect sense in warm weather.
Why I like this mental model so much is because it doesn't require you to change in any way. Besides the obvious of putting on or taking off clothes.
This mental model is all about the circumstances surrounding you. External factors.
***
Where I work, things go in cycles. It might be the same for you too.
In these environments, problems have a way of repeating themselves.
When this happens, it can be easy to fall into the trap of, "Oh we tried that solution once, and it didn't work."
What if the temperature is different now?
