Even to you.
The better you get at something, the worse you become at explaining it.
Choose a skill you're great at, then try to explain it step-by-step:
Click each type to reveal what's hiding in your expertise
What You Know
Only 10% of expertise
• Facts you can recite
• Theories you studied
• Definitions you memorized
• Information in your presentations
What You Do
25% - Runs on autopilot
• Skills you do without thinking
• Techniques that feel natural
• Shortcuts you've developed
• The "muscle memory" of expertise
When You Choose
35% - Your secret sauce
• "It depends" decisions
• Pattern recognition
• Knowing when to break rules
• Strategic pivots and adjustments
How You Think
30% - Most valuable
• Mental models you use
• Beliefs about your field
• How you approach problems
• Your thinking about thinking
The research that powers the EXTRACT Method™
"We know more than we can tell"
Polanyi discovered that human knowledge exists in two forms: explicit (what we can articulate) and tacit (what we know but can't explain). His famous example: we recognize faces instantly but can't explain how. This principle explains why experts struggle to teach - their most valuable knowledge has become tacit through experience.
Thinking about thinking
Flavell revealed that experts develop complex mental models about how their field works, but they're rarely conscious of these models. They think about their thinking without realizing it. This metacognitive knowledge guides every decision but remains invisible even to the expert using it.
From rules to intuition
The Dreyfus brothers mapped how beginners follow explicit rules while experts operate on intuition. As you gain expertise, conscious rule-following transforms into unconscious pattern recognition. This journey from "conscious incompetence" to "unconscious competence" explains why experts can't access their own decision-making process.
The architecture of expertise
John Anderson categorized knowledge into declarative (facts), procedural (skills), and conditional (strategies). His research showed how declarative knowledge transforms into procedural through practice, becoming automatic and inaccessible to consciousness. This framework became the foundation for understanding why traditional teaching methods fail.
These questions reveal the invisible patterns in how you think and work
Trust your first instinct - it reveals your unconscious patterns
Question 1 of 7
Watch how we extract hidden patterns from a real conversation
Client: "I'm struggling with pricing my services."
Expert: "Tell me about your last three clients.
What did you charge and what results did they get?"
Client: "Well, I charged $5K, $8K, and $5K. All were happy but..."
Expert: "But you're wondering why the $8K client paid more for the same work?
Price isn't about your time. It's about their urgency."
Hover over highlighted text to see extracted patterns
Surfaces patterns you use unconsciously
Uses AI to analyze your micro-decisions, language patterns, and behavioral sequences. Finds the patterns in how you work that you can't see yourself.
Maps how you really make choices
Traces your decision trees, identifies criteria you use unconsciously, and reveals the context triggers that change your approach.
Documents your actual process
Follows your problem-to-solution journeys step by step, capturing the shortcuts and intuitive leaps you make without realizing.
Builds frameworks from your thinking
Identifies the beliefs, assumptions, and conceptual structures that guide your expertise. Makes your operating system visible.
Enhances pattern detection
AI analysis finds statistical patterns humans miss, connecting insights across multiple conversations and interactions.
Transforms insights into tools
Creates frameworks, diagnostics, and methodologies from your patterns. Makes your tacit knowledge explicit and transferable.
Ensures real-world results
Systematic deployment of your extracted expertise. Measures impact and continuously refines your frameworks.
Join Signal > Noise and systematically extract your complete Cognitive Fingerprint™