GenAI Field GuideUnder the hood (just enough)
Thinking modes
A thinking (or reasoning) mode lets the model work through intermediate steps before it answers. It costs time and tokens and it helps most on hard, multi-step problems. It does nothing for a rewrite.
When to turn it up
| Turn thinking up | Leave it off |
|---|---|
| Multi-step reasoning about numbers, schedules with constraints (the arithmetic itself still goes to a tool) | Rewriting an email or memo |
| Multi-step logic: "if this, then what?" | Summarizing a document you attached |
| Code, data cleanup, anything a test will catch | Brainstorming and first drafts |
| Comparing options against several criteria | Simple questions with a source in the prompt |
| Anything where a wrong answer costs you | Bulk, repetitive tasks |
What the names mean
Products label it differently: a Thinking tier, a reasoning effort of low / medium / high, or a thinking budget in tokens. Same idea: how much room the model gets to work before it answers. Some products don't expose a setting at all and decide for you; the advice below applies where you have the control. And watch the word "Pro": on one platform it is the bigger model, on another the deepest reasoning setting.