Recently finished reading @AdamMGrant so I decided to jot down these practical takeaways to improve my rethinking skills. Might be relevant to you as well! 👇 
1 - Think Like A Scientist:
When forming an opinion, resist the temptation to preach, prosecute, or politick. Treat your emerging view as a hunch or a hypothesis and test it with data.
When forming an opinion, resist the temptation to preach, prosecute, or politick. Treat your emerging view as a hunch or a hypothesis and test it with data.
2 - Define Your Identity In Values, Not Opinions:
See yourself as someone who values curiosity, learning, mental flexibility, and searching for knowledge. Keep a list of factors that would change your mind.
See yourself as someone who values curiosity, learning, mental flexibility, and searching for knowledge. Keep a list of factors that would change your mind.
3 - Seek Out Info That Goes Against Your Views:
Follow people who make you think - even if you usually disagree with what they think.
Follow people who make you think - even if you usually disagree with what they think.
4 - Don't Confuse Confidence With Competence:
To prevent over-confidence in your knowledge, reflect on how well you can explain a given subject.
To prevent over-confidence in your knowledge, reflect on how well you can explain a given subject.
5 - Harness The Benefits Of Doubt:
Reframe any doubts as an opportunity for growth. Knowing what you don't know is often the 1st step toward developing expertise.
Reframe any doubts as an opportunity for growth. Knowing what you don't know is often the 1st step toward developing expertise.
6 - Embrace The Joy Of Being Wrong:
Take mistakes as a sign that you've discovered something new. It helps you focus less on proving yourself - and more on improving yourself.
Take mistakes as a sign that you've discovered something new. It helps you focus less on proving yourself - and more on improving yourself.
7 - Learn Something New From Each Person You Meet:
Ask people what they have been rethinking lately, or start a conversation about times you have changed your mind n the past year.
Ask people what they have been rethinking lately, or start a conversation about times you have changed your mind n the past year.
8 - Build A Challenge Network, Not Just A Support Network:
Identify your most thoughtful critics and invite them to question your thinking. Tell them why you respect their pushback - and where they usually add the most value.
Identify your most thoughtful critics and invite them to question your thinking. Tell them why you respect their pushback - and where they usually add the most value.
9 - Don't Shy Away From Constructive Conflict:
Frame disagreement as a debate: people are more likely to approach it intellectually and less likely to take it personally.
Frame disagreement as a debate: people are more likely to approach it intellectually and less likely to take it personally.
10 - Practice The Art of Persuasive Listening:
Show interest in helping people crystallize their own views and uncover their own reasons for change by increasing your question-to-statement ratio.
Show interest in helping people crystallize their own views and uncover their own reasons for change by increasing your question-to-statement ratio.
11 - Question How Rather Than Why:
When people explain HOW they would make their views a reality, they often realize the limits of their understanding and start to temper some of their opinions.
When people explain HOW they would make their views a reality, they often realize the limits of their understanding and start to temper some of their opinions.
12 - Ask How People Originally Formed An Opinion:
To help people re-evaluate, prompt them to consider how they'd believe different things if they'd been born at a different time or in a different place.
To help people re-evaluate, prompt them to consider how they'd believe different things if they'd been born at a different time or in a different place.
13 - Acknowledge Common Ground:
Admitting points of convergence shows that you're willing to negotiate about what's true, and it motivates the other side to consider your POV.
Admitting points of convergence shows that you're willing to negotiate about what's true, and it motivates the other side to consider your POV.
14 - Remember That Less Is More:
Instead of diluting your argument, lead with a few of your strongest points.
Instead of diluting your argument, lead with a few of your strongest points.
15 - Complexify Contentious Topics:
Instead of treating polarizing issues like 2 sides of a coin, look at them through the many lenses of a prism. Seeing the shades of gray can make us more open.
Instead of treating polarizing issues like 2 sides of a coin, look at them through the many lenses of a prism. Seeing the shades of gray can make us more open.
16 - Expand Your Emotional Range:
Mix in a broader set of emotions by showing some curiosity or admitting confusion/ambivalence.
Mix in a broader set of emotions by showing some curiosity or admitting confusion/ambivalence.
17 - Abandon Best Practices:
If we want people to keep rethinking, we might be better off adopting process accountability and continually striving for better practices.
If we want people to keep rethinking, we might be better off adopting process accountability and continually striving for better practices.
18 - Keep A Rethinking Scorecard:
Track how thoroughly different options are considered in the process. A bad process with a good outcome is luck. A good process with a bad outcome might be a smart experiment.
Track how thoroughly different options are considered in the process. A bad process with a good outcome is luck. A good process with a bad outcome might be a smart experiment.
19 - Rethink Your Actions, Not Just Your Surroundings:
Joy can wax and wane, but meaning is more likely to last. Building a sense of purpose often starts with taking actions to enhance your learning or your contribution to others.
Joy can wax and wane, but meaning is more likely to last. Building a sense of purpose often starts with taking actions to enhance your learning or your contribution to others.
20 - Make Time To Think Again:
Schedule a weekly time for re-thinking and un-learning. Reach out to your challenge network and ask what ideas/opinions they think you should be reconsidering.
End 🙏
Schedule a weekly time for re-thinking and un-learning. Reach out to your challenge network and ask what ideas/opinions they think you should be reconsidering.
End 🙏
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