Breakthrough Thinking

Core Loop (Mandatory)

1. Summarize current dead-end in 1 sentence

   • "Current route fails because ____"

2. Pick ONE model from references/mental-models.md

   • Pick the most relevant model for this failure mode.
   • Do not pick multiple at once.

3. Apply the model directly to solve the problem

   • Use the model's perspective to approach the problem fresh.
   • Execute the solution immediately.

4. Check result

   • If solved: finalize and verify.
   • If not solved: go back to step 2, pick a DIFFERENT model, and try again.
   • Repeat until solved or all relevant models exhausted.

Model Selection Heuristics

• Looping / same idea repeated → Inversion, Red Team, 5 Whys
• Too many moving parts → Reductionism, 80/20
• Unclear root cause → 5 Whys, Root Cause Analysis, Binary Search
• High uncertainty → Bayesian Updating, Expected Value, Decision Tree
• Cognitive lock-in → Lateral Thinking, Random Input, Beginner's Mind
• Overengineering → Occam, KISS, MVP, YAGNI
• Execution paralysis → OODA, PDCA, Timeboxing, Fail Fast

Hard Rules

• No "same approach + small tweak" twice in a row.
• Every retry must use a DIFFERENT mental model.
• Do not ask user for info until you've exhausted locally testable paths.
• Claims of completion must include evidence.
• If one model fails, immediately switch to another model. Do not get stuck on one framework.

Output Format (when triggered)

Use this compact format:

[Breakthrough]
Dead-end: ...
Model: ...
Approach: ...
Result: ...
Next: ...

Completion Criteria

Stop only when one is true:

• Problem solved + verified evidence
• Problem bounded + best next action clearly defined
• Explicit user stop

Reference Library

For model definitions and creators, read:

• references/mental-models.md

Do not dump the entire library unless user asks. Pick only what is needed for the current stall.