Activation Energy

Lower the barrier to start. Once in motion, momentum carries you.

Example

Commit to "just 5 minutes" of exercise—once started, you often continue.

When to use it

Use Activation Energy when facing complex decisions with multiple variables. It's especially powerful when conventional wisdom seems wrong or when you're operating in unfamiliar territory.

• Over-applying: Not every problem benefits from this model. Match the tool to the situation.
• Under-applying: People learn the model but don't practice it. Application takes repetition.
• Misunderstanding the principle: Surface-level understanding leads to poor execution. Study the examples.
• Ignoring context: The same model works differently in different domains. Adapt accordingly.

1. Identify a current decision you're facing. Write down the assumptions you're making. Challenge each one.
2. Look at a past failure. Apply Activation Energy retroactively: would it have changed the outcome?
3. Teach the model to someone else. If you can't explain it simply, you don't understand it well enough.
4. Set a reminder to apply this model once per week for the next month. Track the results.

The best thinkers have internalized multiple mental models and apply them fluidly based on context.