The City Zoom-Level Mental Model
Approach any problem from 40,000 feet, then descend to contours, then to streets
- Difficulty
- Moderate
- Time to result
- ~weeks to results
- Steps
- 4
- Confidence
- 82%
Ek approaches any important problem the way you would study a city from an aeroplane. At 40,000 feet the city is just a blob with no visible topography, so the first move is simply to allocate enough time because you do not yet know what you do not know. Then you descend to a 'level two' at roughly 20,000 feet, where you can see the contours and the rough branches, the main blocks to dive into. From there you pick a block and progressively increase the resolution toward the streets and the leaves of detail. He uses the same zoom process whether learning to be a good public-company CEO or simply studying a subject of interest, and links it to Elon Musk's tree-branches-leaves framing.
Origin
Ek's personal mental model for approaching problems and learning, which he relates to Elon Musk's tree, branches, and leaves description of first-principles thinking.
Core principles
- 01You do not know what you do not know, so start by allocating enough time
- 02Understanding builds in resolution levels, not all at once
- 03Get to the contours before trying to see the details
- 04The same zoom process works for any problem or new subject
How to run it
- 1
Allocate time first
Because you do not know what you do not know, begin by committing enough time to the problem rather than rushing to conclusions.
- 2
Start at 40,000 feet
See the whole as a blob with no detail, accepting that the topography is not yet visible.
Watch out Do not mistake the blob view for understanding; it only frames the territory.
- 3
Descend to the contours
Get to a 20,000-foot level where you can see the main blocks and rough branches of the problem.
Pro tip Use this level to decide which blocks are worth diving into.
- 4
Increase resolution
Pick a block and progressively zoom to the streets and details until you can see what you need.
In the wild
Facing the goal of becoming a good public-company CEO, Ek started at the blob level, then descended to blocks such as understanding how public-market investors differ from VCs, their motivations, and which to attract, before zooming into the detailed habits and skills each required.
→ He systematically built the skills of a public-company CEO and judged himself at least decent by the time Spotify went public.
Common mistakes
Diving to the streets first
Starting with details before seeing the contours means you optimise the wrong blocks and miss the structure.
Not allocating enough time
Underfunding time for an unfamiliar problem leaves your blind spots invisible and the map incomplete.
Is it for you?
Best for
Anyone tackling a large unfamiliar problem or learning a new subject from scratch.
Not ideal for
Well-understood, routine tasks where the structure is already known.
From the transcript
“my mental image is that of a city when i approach a problem”
“i don't know what i don't know so i always start by allocating enough time”
From the episode
#484: Daniel Ek, CEO of Spotify — Habits, Systems and Mental Models for Top Performance