Thinking Cards

What they are:

AI-generated question cards designed to expand your thinking around the post or idea. Each card poses a question that pushes you to consider angles, perspectives, or implications you might not have explored yet.
Thinking Cards don’t write your post for you. They help you think better about what you’re writing. They surface ideas, connections, and depth that make the difference between surface-level content and posts that stand out.

How to use Thinking Cards:

  • Pick the type of coaching you want (see types below)
  • Select content source: Analyze the written post (left box) OR the original idea (Original Idea section)
  • Click Generate Ideas
  • Review the question cards that appear
  • Click arrows underneath to scroll through multiple questions
  • Consider each question. Let it spark ideas, reveal assumptions, or suggest new angles
  • Return to your post and incorporate insights (or incorporate insights as you go, you can edit on the left and get ides on the right)

Thinking Card Types:

Edge Case Hunting

Explores atypical audience needs, uncommon questions, or rare scenarios not usually covered in mainstream content. Edge cases make your content stand out. Instead of saying what everyone else says, you address situations others ignore.
Example questions Edge Case Hunting might generate:

  • “What if someone in your audience has the opposite problem most people have?”
  • “How does this advice apply to someone with severe budget constraints?”
  • “What about people in non-traditional situations this usually doesn’t address?”

When to use: When content feels generic or you want to differentiate from what everyone else is saying about the topic.

Assumption Excavation

Identifies unexamined assumptions embedded in your thinking. We all have assumptions we’re unaware of. They can make content less accessible or less clear to audiences who don’t share those assumptions. AI coaching provides neutral perspective to surface these.
Example questions:

  • “You assume readers already understand [concept] - what if they don’t?”
  • “This advice assumes [circumstance] - how does it change without that?”
  • “You’re writing as though everyone [assumption] - what about those who don’t?”

When to use: When content feels unclear, when you want to make it more accessible, or when you need more post ideas spawned from the original concept.
Tip: Assumption Excavation is particularly useful for generating additional post ideas from one original concept.

Stakeholder Rotation

Shifts perspective to different audience segments or stakeholders. Most of us write from our own viewpoint by default - Stakeholder Rotation helps you consider how different people experience the topic.
Example questions:

  • “How does this look from the customer’s perspective versus the service provider’s?”
  • “What would someone just starting out think about this advice?”
  • “How would the person on the receiving end of this process experience it?”

When to use: When you want to tailor content to specific audiences, make it more relevant to diverse readers, or increase engagement by addressing multiple perspectives.

Second-Order Effects

Pushes thinking beyond immediate consequences to what happens next, and next after that. Prevents surface-level content by forcing you to follow implications all the way through.
Example questions:

  • “If everyone followed this advice, what would happen?”
  • “What are the long-term consequences of this approach?”
  • “This solves [problem] - but what new problems might it create?”

When to use: When content feels too shallow or you want to demonstrate deeper strategic thinking.

Historical Parallels

Identifies historical events, stories, or examples that parallel your topic. Historical parallels make content memorable, believable, and easier to follow because readers connect abstract concepts to concrete, familiar stories.
Example questions:

  • “What historical event reflects this pattern?”
  • “Has this situation played out before in history with different players?”
  • “What well-known story illustrates this principle?”

When to use: When you need illustrative examples, want to make abstract concepts concrete, or need ideas for engaging storytelling.

Failure Mode Investigation

Explores how your advice, approach, or topic could fail or go wrong. Considering risks and downsides demonstrates balanced thinking and helps audiences avoid pitfalls.
Example questions:

  • “What are the risks of following this advice?”
  • “Under what conditions would this approach fail?”
  • “What could go wrong if someone implements this incorrectly?”

When to use: When you want to think more deeply about a topic, show balanced perspective, or help audiences avoid common mistakes.

Resource Constraints

Considers how to achieve goals with limited resources. For example, time, budget, expertise, or access. Resource constraint thinking generates creative solutions and makes content relevant to audiences who can’t afford premium approaches.
Example questions:

  • “How could someone do this with no budget?”
  • “What if they only have 30 minutes per week for this?”
  • “How does this work for someone without specialized tools or software?”

When to use: When you want out-of-the-box thinking, need to make content accessible to resource-limited audiences, or want to demonstrate creative problem-solving.

Scale Sensitivity Testing

Examines how the topic changes at dramatically different scales, much larger or much smaller than normal. Reveals insights that only become visible when you zoom in or out.
Example questions:

  • “How would this work for a company with 10,000 employees versus 2 employees?”
  • “What if this problem affected millions of people instead of dozens?”
  • “How does the solution change for someone doing this once versus daily?”

When to use: When you work with certain sized clients but want to attract different sized businesses, want to show range of thinking, or need fresh angles on familiar topics.

How to use Thinking Card questions effectively:

  • Don’t answer every question: Some will spark brilliant insights, others won’t resonate. Use what’s valuable, ignore what isn’t.
  • Let questions simmer: Don’t rush. Read a question, think about it for a few minutes, see what emerges.
  • Some questions will seem weird: That’s intentional. Unusual questions break standard thinking patterns and spark creativity.
  • Generate multiple card sets: If the first set doesn’t help, generate again for different questions on the same topic.
  • Combine card types: Use Edge Case Hunting to find unique angles, then Assumption Excavation to make those angles clearer, then Historical Parallels to illustrate them.