Observe: 3 Ways to Challenge Your Skills Immediately
Like exercising, leveling up won’t happen without pushing your limits.
The best creators are the best observers. Good observation — watching, reading, listening, feeling, and all else — is the foundation of meaningful insights.
That’s why you’ve taken the time to read the full Observe intro series:
- Observe: Building Your Think Slower Skills Toolbox
- The 3 Levels of Growth
- Six Questions to Challenge Yourself
- Failure Modes to Look Out For With Observe
- 4 Shortcuts to Enhance Your Skill Set
Now it’s time to challenge yourself.
Try This Today
BEGINNER: PRACTICE OBSERVATION
Spend 15-30 minutes at a coffee shop. Observe and capture as many details as you can. Don’t just focus on surface-level actions. Observe surrounding conditions, patterns, pauses, reactions, and environmental influences shaping what’s happening around you. Also tally any repeated actions/details for metrics.
INTERMEDIATE: MAKE AN IMMEDIATE IMPACT AT WORK
Observe wide and deep: while in Observe mode, try to capture at least five surrounding conditions before analyzing your core observation. Look beyond the obvious to notice timing, environment, incentives, pressure, relationships, interruptions, or any additional context that may be shaping the experience.
ADVANCED: TRIANGULATE YOUR OBSERVATIONS
Choose a bustling space — a coffee shop, store, airport gate, meeting, lobby, or event — and observe it from three different points of view. For example: customer, employee, and manager. Capture what each person might notice, react to, miss, avoid, or need. Then compare the three views before forming a conclusion about what’s actually happening.