Mental Model Assessment

Please read the instructions carefully before starting the assessment:

For each situation, select the response that best matches what you actually did (or would most likely do) in a similar situation.
Remember, this is about your real-life decision-making tendencies — there are no right or wrong answers.
Be honest with your choices so that you can gain valuable insights into your decision-making style.
Your results will help identify your tendency to leverage mental models and how they influence your decision-making process.

Note: This assessment is designed to evaluate your natural decision-making preferences. Take your time to reflect on each scenario for the most accurate results.

You’re deciding between two job offers. One pays more, but the other offers more learning opportunities and room for growth. What do you prioritize? *Choose the role with growthTry to negotiate with both and decide based on how they respond.Delay the decision and look for a third, hybrid option.Take the higher-paying job

Your product team is rushing to launch a new feature that hasn’t been fully tested. What’s your response? *Launch anyway — market feedback will help you iterate.Release to a limited beta group and measure real-world data.Delay launch — reputational risk outweighs speed.Do a short pre-launch sprint focused on fixing major unknowns.

A colleague always takes credit for shared work. How do you respond? *Let it go — the team knows the truth.Bring it up privately and ask about their intentions.Escalate it formally to your manager.Start documenting your contributions in writing and copying leadership.

You’re analyzing why a marketing campaign failed. What’s your first step? *Ask what assumptions were made during the planning phase.Look at metrics — impressions, clickthrough, conversions.Map the full customer journey and identify drop-off points.Compare to past campaigns to find trends.

You’re asked to forecast next year’s revenue. What do you consider most important? *Take an optimistic, moderate, and pessimistic view, and average them.Break down the business into units: customers × average spend × retention.Last year’s revenue — that’s your baseline.Industry trends and external variables.

A product you launched is underperforming. What’s your next move? *Compare against competitor features to identify what you're missing.Double your marketing spend to boost visibility.Survey current users to understand where expectations aren’t met.Pause further spending and do a postmortem on what led to low engagement.

You’re considering taking on a freelance project, but you're already at 90% capacity. What do you do? *Accept it — more income is always good.Only accept if it replaces a lower-value task or client.Take it on, then rework your schedule to make it fit.Decline now, but offer availability next quarter.

A teammate proposes a bold strategy with high potential but unproven results. How do you respond? *Request data and test results before giving approval.Support it fully — big risks bring big rewards.Propose a small-scale pilot to test assumptions.Suggest refining the current strategy instead of pivoting.

You’re mentoring someone who keeps missing deadlines. What’s your approach? *Provide them with time management training resources.Ask what’s getting in the way and co-create a new plan.Set hard deadlines and consequences going forward.Do the work yourself to ensure the team doesn’t fall behind.

Your startup has limited funds and needs to decide between improving your current product or launching a new one. What do you prioritize? *Improve the current product — retention is cheaper than acquisition.Run an experiment on a subset of users for both options.Survey customers about what matters most to them.Launch the new product — growth comes from new markets.

You're hiring someone with strong credentials but red flags about culture fit. What do you do? *Pass — culture issues always grow.Hire based on qualifications and monitor behavior during the probation period.Involve the team in another interview to assess alignment.Hire and invest in culture training up front.

You’re leading a business looking to enter a new market. How do you start? *Conduct deep customer interviews and market analysis first.Partner with someone who already has experience in that market.Launch a small test offering and measure traction.Replicate your existing model in the new market — it worked before.

You notice your team seems burned out. What’s your next move? *Audit workloads and distribution of responsibilities.Offer bonuses or extra paid time off.Ask each member what they need and adapt accordingly.Plan a morale event or social activity to reenergize them.

Your business is steadily losing market share to a newer competitor. What do you prioritize? *Copy their features and messaging quickly.Interview former customers to understand their switch.Review your own unique value proposition and double down on it.Aggressively discount prices to retain users.

Your revenue is fluctuating unpredictably. How do you create more stability? *Create multiple income streams to diversify risk.Add more clients to smooth the curve.Cut variable costs aggressively.Explore retainer or subscription-based models.

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