This article proposes pathways towards developing BIM thinking as a set of objectives and characteristics that allow revisiting the grounds and principles on which one can reason about BIM, irrespective of the specific applications or tools. The article looks into questions such as– Why do we need BIM thinking, and why now? What should we look for in BIM thinking, and how? The research applies abductive reasoning for qualitative grouping and classification of the preprocessed data collected from the existing literature review articles and BIM glossaries, combined with peer feedback from workshops and discussions. The fundamental objectives and characteristics to be considered in BIM thinking include representation, documentation, transactions and exchange, decision support, standardization, knowledge and information management, automation, and ecosystem and systems. Since the hope of the future transformation of the construction industry is largely pinned on a range of digital technologies, BIM thinking should facilitate informed decisions about the ways forward.