Inquiry driven by discipline.

Culture, narrative, systems, and human orientation.

CURRENT WORK Founder of Think First, The M Institute, and M Corp.
Author of Distorted and host of Think First with Jim Detjen.

Building institutions and practical systems that strengthen discernment and preserve human responsibility.

Jim Detjen’s work spans public inquiry, intellectual stewardship, brand architecture, technology, sports, and organizational development.

Profile

One person. Several distinct bodies of work.

Jim’s work centers on a common question: how can people and institutions strengthen discernment when information is abundant, trust is fragile, and technology increasingly shapes perception?

That question is pursued through Think First, The M Institute, M, Katapult, publishing, and selected advisory work.

This site serves as a point of orientation. The work itself lives with the organizations and initiatives responsible for it.

Current Work

Where the work takes form.

Think First

Public Initiative

Think First

Public inquiry, publishing, cultural analysis, The Journal, Distorted, and Think First with Jim Detjen.

Visit Think First
The M Institute

Intellectual Institution

The M Institute

A permanent intellectual and stewardship institution responsible for the Library of Discernment, Fifteen Fields of Inquiry, M Fellowship, and related long-horizon work concerned with human judgment.

Visit The M Institute
M

Commercial Workspace

M

A human-accountable workspace for consequential inquiry, designed to examine evidence, test competing perspectives, and keep judgment human.

Visit M
Katapult

Creative Collective

Katapult

A multidisciplinary creative collective assembled around ambitious work that does not fit neatly within a single discipline.

Visit Katapult

Selected Publishing

Selected publishing and public inquiry.

01 Distorted: The Psychology of Gaslighting, the Power of Story, and the Practice of Clarity A book about perception, information, and the responsibility to examine how conclusions are formed. 02 Think First with Jim Detjen Conversations and inquiry exploring perception, evidence, gaslighting, poetic truth, technology, institutions, and the forces that shape human judgment.

Private Advisory

Direct counsel when reputation, communication, and decisions shape outcomes.

Jim advises a small number of founders, executives, public figures, athletes, authors, and institutional leaders whose names, decisions, and public positioning carry unusual consequence. The work is direct, private, and built around long-term clarity—not agency layers, publicity churn, or generic playbooks.

Explore the Advisory Practice

Contact

Begin with the appropriate work.

For podcast, publishing, and Think First inquiries, visit Think First. For institutional relationships, contact The M Institute. For M Corp. or product matters, use the contact information provided by M.

For direct speaking, media, advisory, or professional inquiries: