Simplify ideas to wield them more effectively.

Focus is highly constrained, so simple representations of ideas helps preserve space for decision making or analysis. Storyboarding, for example. Chunks of information can stand in for millions of data points with experience, chess board layouts for example. Easy to work with 4 chunks of data. Other parts of the brain can be useful with simplified data.rR1 Externalizing simplifications allows them to be built upon. Decision options must be reduced to wieldable number.


  1. David Rock, Your Brain at Work: Strategies for Overcoming Distraction, Regaining Focus, and Working Smarter All Day Long, 1st ed (New York: Harper Business, 2009). (See notes.)