If you have mastered most of the basic concepts and principles and are able to complete the majority of fundamental tasks, you should continuously increase the proportion of time dedicated to deep thinking in your overall learning and work.
Deep thinking is a core path to flexible application: the purpose of learning and work is to apply knowledge and skills. You have truly mastered a subject or skill only when you can apply it flexibly. One of the main ways to achieve this is through deep thinking.
Scenarios requiring deep thinking: In a professional setting, solving complex problems, handling unexpected situations, and engaging in strategic planning often require a significant amount of deep thinking. For instance, addressing user experience challenges in product design, gaining insights from data analysis anomalies, performing risk assessment in project management, or defining market positioning in marketing strategies all necessitate deep thinking.
Enhancing Deep Thinking Ability
Increase the proportion of deep thinking As you progress in your field, you should increase the proportion of time spent on deep thinking relative to your total learning and working time. This is because as you gain experience, the amount of information and basic procedures you need to memorize decreases, while the number of complex issues requiring deep thinking increases.
Extend the duration of deep thinking For simple problems, you might find a solution in just a few minutes; for complex ones, you might need tens of minutes or even hours. For even more difficult problems, you might need to think for a longer time. When thinking about a problem for a long time without finding a good solution, some people tend to become impatient. Others would rather do more simple tasks or memorize more information than engage in deep thinking. If you fall into this pattern, you will not be able to truly grasp the core of certain things. You need to train yourself to extend the duration of your thinking. Mentally, extending the time you spend on deep thinking is a process of calming yourself and focusing on the problem.
Develop a habit of regular deep thinking Developing a habit of regular deep thinking can not only greatly improve your ability to think deeply but also help you focus and concentrate on the task at hand.
Definition: Maximum continuous deep thinking time Maximum continuous deep thinking time refers to the longest duration you can think about a problem without interruption. Evidently, the longer you can engage in uninterrupted deep thinking, the greater the possibility of integrating knowledge, the deeper your thought process becomes, and the more connections you can uncover between different pieces of information. However, due to mental and physical limitations, you cannot sustain continuous deep thinking for an excessively long period. Generally, a maximum continuous deep thinking time of over half an hour is commendable. If you can achieve three to four hours or even longer, it indicates a very strong deep thinking ability.
Work anxiety and deep thinking After reaching a certain stage, you may develop a sense of urgency in your work. Driven by this urgency, you can persist for long periods without complaint; you feel a sense of emptiness and unease if you don’t make progress for a few hours; you feel unsettled if a day goes by without a new insight. Without a doubt, this urgency ensures you have sufficient time for your work and keeps you motivated. This sense of urgency has helped you make progress in your work and will continue to ensure you stay focused in the future.
However, sometimes, this urgency can hinder deep thinking. Urgency can easily lead to a feeling of restlessness, and when this feeling builds up, it obstructs your deep thinking. The more you try to think, the more restless you feel, and eventually, you give up. Another reason is that you are reluctant to spend time thinking deeply, because you can complete many simple tasks in an hour, while an hour of deep thinking might not yield any results. Therefore, you feel that deep thinking is “not worthwhile.” Working under high-pressure urgency for an extended period can reduce your mental flexibility and creativity. This can lead to a situation where the more tasks you complete, the less you are able to apply knowledge flexibly; the more information you accumulate, the more disorganized your mind becomes. Consequently, even though you are working harder, your results stagnate or even decline. Methods to alleviate urgency include maintaining a relaxed and positive mindset, engaging in high-intensity exercise, and building self-confidence. Urgency and “Focus”: When working with a high sense of urgency, you can enhance your deep thinking ability by improving your focus. By then maintaining a relaxed and positive mindset, you can further enhance your deep thinking. Early in his career, Adam often felt restless when engaging in deep thinking. He cultivated his focus, which enabled him to persist. After half an hour of deep thinking, as new insights emerged, his mind would gradually calm down. Later in his career, he maintained a positive mindset while staying focused, which significantly reduced the resistance to deep thinking. He no longer felt restless and his reactions remained swift. Urgency and high-intensity exercise: High-intensity exercise can help dissolve the restlessness caused by work urgency during deep thinking.
Deep Thinking and Work Methods
Deep thinking to find connections between different knowledge points Once your knowledge base is well-established and you have mastered most of the basic concepts, only through deep thinking can you connect various related pieces of information to form your own knowledge network.
Deep thinking to understand various problem and solution variations For critical issues, such as classic case studies or project proposals, only by thinking deeply can you understand all the possible variations.
Deep thinking for flexible application of knowledge For many jobs, the progression from basic understanding to mastery and flexible application requires deep thinking. For roles that demand creativity and analytical skills, such as product design or strategic planning, if you don’t develop the habit of deep thinking, you might never reach the highest level of expertise. No matter how hard you work, your results will not be the best. Without sufficient time for deep thinking, your knowledge will always remain fragmented. Only through deep thinking can you find the most fundamental connections between different pieces of knowledge, “string together” seemingly unrelated information, appreciate the subtle and refined aspects of a subject, and achieve flexible application, cross-disciplinary integration, and comprehensive understanding. In the middle of his career, Daniel had accumulated many classic case studies and had mastered typical solutions. When handling related tasks, he would naturally recall these cases and often find a solution using their principles. Sometimes, while working on one project, another unrelated classic case study would suddenly come to his mind. He would then set aside his current work to carefully contemplate that case, and a new solution would often emerge. A few months later, his career progressed to an advanced stage.
Deep thinking to resolve pitfalls caused by excessive execution After entering the intermediate and advanced stages of your career, once you have mastered the basic concepts and execution skills, your focus should shift to flexible application and cross-disciplinary integration, rather than blindly engaging in more repetitive tasks. Some people insist on doing more and more tasks, delving into minor details, and even getting caught up in minutiae. This can lead to a work trap where you complete many tasks but can’t handle situations with slight variations; you overcomplicate simple processes. When dealing with integrated tasks, you either miss key points or make directional errors.
Deep thinking time must be sufficient A single concept, a typical case, a new idea, or a conclusion can sometimes take a few minutes or ten minutes to figure out. Other times, it may take one or two hours, or even several days. Therefore, you must allocate sufficient time for deep thinking.
Only think about what is worth thinking about A person’s time is limited, and the time you have for thinking is even more so. Every time you think about something not worth your time, you are taking away from the time you could spend on things that matter. You must remember to only think about what is worth your time. Furthermore, only think deeply about what is worth deep thinking. For these valuable things, your time and depth of thinking should be sufficient; you should not give up until you have a thorough and clear understanding.
Rigid methods can hinder deep thinking Clinging to one single method often obstructs deep thinking. Sophia, an advanced professional, is calm, meticulous, and has an extraordinary memory and a clear mind. She is diligent and has accumulated a vast amount of information; she often remembers details that others forget. As a result, Sophia’s work is outstanding. Unless you possess an extraordinary memory, you should not blindly memorize an excessive amount of information. The key to professional excellence is flexible application and cross-disciplinary integration, not memorizing a large number of meaningless details. Memorizing too much, summarizing too little, engaging in excessive execution, and failing to grasp the big picture of your work can all hinder deep thinking.
Grasping the key points first during deep thinking When thinking, you should first focus on the most crucial and core aspects. Be selective when acquiring information, especially when faced with a large amount of data. Choose useful and critical information over junk data and be skilled at summarizing the key points from a large volume of information.
Deep thinking, notebooks, and knowledge systems Whenever you gain new insights from deep thinking—for example, understanding a concept from a different perspective, discovering a clever solution, or figuring out a complex problem—you should write them down in a notebook. Periodically, review and reflect on these insights. Gradually, you will be able to integrate them and form your own knowledge system.
Deep thinking to break fixed mindsets Generally, one reason for a fixed mindset is relying too much on routines and thinking too little. Over-reliance on routines and insufficient thinking often lead to misunderstandings. Through deep thinking, by thinking logically and making connections, you can correct these misunderstandings.
Clarifying ideas through discussion Discussion can help clarify your ideas. You don’t have to convince others, but at the very least, you will make your own points clearer and your thought process more defined. Additionally, discussion can train your ability to articulate your thoughts.
Deep Thinking and Your Work Content
Master the core principles of your work When you master the core principles of your field, your approach becomes much clearer. For example, for software development, it is crucial to form a complete system of problem-solving techniques. For many physical problems, it is vital to form a clear mental model.
Think deeply about your current work Periodically, you should think deeply about whether your current work methods are correct and if there are better ways to do things. For example, when conducting market analysis, should you spend more or less time collecting data? When analyzing data, should you focus on deep dives or broad coverage? Your daily working time is limited, so you should find the optimal schedule. Or, for instance, does a project have obvious knowledge gaps, and how can they be filled? Should you do more tasks or read more documents? Is your work intensity too low? Is your commitment sufficient? By regularly thinking deeply about your work methods, you will gain more experience and find it easier to apply good methods from other areas to your current work.
Deep thinking time varies by job type Different types of jobs have different characteristics, and the time you spend on deep thinking will vary. For example, for some mechanical and repetitive tasks, you may not need to think deeply at all. However, for tasks requiring strategy, for every ten hours you spend working, you might need to dedicate three or four hours or more to deep thinking.
Deep thinking time varies by different parts of the same job For instance, for mechanical tasks like data cleaning or basic coding, you don’t need to think deeply; just follow the procedures. But when it comes to data modeling or architectural design, you must engage in frequent deep thinking.
Continuously Extending Deep Thinking Time
Don’t be reluctant to spend time on deep thinking For beginners, the main focus should be on memorizing and understanding fundamental concepts. However, once you enter an intermediate stage, you should spend more time on deep thinking. Initially, you might feel that spending one or two hours thinking about a single problem is not worthwhile. Don’t worry, because once you form the habit of deep thinking and your ability improves, your speed will increase.
Set aside dedicated time for deep thinking At the end of each week, summarize how much time you spent on dedicated thinking and whether you gained a deeper understanding of any concepts. Generally, the higher your professional level, the more time you should set aside for dedicated thinking. You can choose critical issues or classic case studies that require careful thought—for example, a marketing strategy you’ve learned but can’t apply flexibly, or a complex problem with an obscure solution—and set aside a couple of hours to think about it from every angle, making connections and exploring different perspectives.
The proportion of dedicated deep thinking time to total work time Generally, the higher your professional level, the greater the proportion of dedicated deep thinking time to your total work time. For example, at the beginner level, deep thinking time should be 10% or more. At the intermediate level, it should be 20% to 30% or more. At the advanced level, it should be 30% to 40% or more. Of course, these proportions are just general guidelines; the ideal time will vary depending on your specific role, the field you are in, and the particular tasks you are performing.
Thinking about multiple problems simultaneously You can think about two or more problems at the same time. For example, you might be handling daily emails when a solution to a difficult project problem suddenly comes to mind. In fact, many highly experienced professionals’ minds are constantly working on problems whenever they are awake, and they are often able to think about multiple issues simultaneously. However, this is often a natural occurrence, so you shouldn’t force it at the beginning.
Constantly change your perspective If one path is blocked, try another. Your mind should be as unconstrained as possible.
Deep thinking during spare time Engaging in deep thinking during breaks, commutes, or other spare time can always be productive. If you are very experienced in your field, you might be able to figure out a problem in a few minutes of free time. If you are still at a beginner level, you can still use this time to organize the information in your mind through deep thinking.