Make a Mental Model of Your Domain

As you spend more time in any given vertical, your mind forms a model of how things work in your vertical. This is extremely valuable – nothing can really substitute this model. It has so many unquantifiable elements, that it is mathematically not possible to replicate the model even with the most comprehensive set of inputs.

Make a conscious effort to develop and nurture this model. Over time, it would turn into an intelligent information processing engine with solid predictive capabilities – something that you can use to test your hypotheses and concepts. It would tell you where the inefficiencies are, and what solutions could possibly work.

The most successful people in any domain are not competing with each other. Their models are competing with each other. If you think about it, that is why ‘The Daily’ failed. The models need to be nurtured and adapted, in real-time if you are in the information domain.