Think Again: The Power of Knowing What You Don't Know

This book is a must read for anyone wanting to practice intellectual humility. Mixing compelling human interest stories with scientific research, Grant shows us how letting go of our attachment to being right or expert gives us the space to acknowledge what we don't know and engage in an openness and curiosity about others that might help us heal the polarizing divides we face as a global society.

There are two powerful reasons to read this book. One: You’ll learn a lot. Two: This book will be mentioned in articles and discussions. It will make the short list of books every manager should read. I bought Think Again: The Power of Knowing What You Don’t Know by Adam Grant because I’ve learned a lot from his books, blogs, and articles. I expected the same level of lucid writing and penetrating insight that I got from Originals and Give and Take. For me, this was the best book yet. Think Again is the best book Grant has written for business leaders. That VUCA world we keep hearing about requires flexibility and unlearning. Most of the books I’ve seen on the kind of learning you need for today’s world focus on corporate cultures, on creating “learning institutions.” Think Again is different. Think Again is about the learning culture between your ears. Here’s how Grant states the purpose of the book. “This book is an invitation to let go of knowledge and opinions that are no longer serving you well, and to anchor your sense of self in flexibility rather than consistency. If you can master the art of rethinking, I believe you’ll be better positioned for success at work and happiness in life. Thinking again can help you generate new solutions to old problems and revisit old solutions to new problems. It’s a path to learning more from the people around you and living with fewer regrets. A hallmark of wisdom is knowing when it’s time to abandon some of your most treasured tools—and some of the most cherished parts of your identity.”The first section of the book is about opening your mind. It’s about what “thinking again” really means. The second part of the book looks at ways to encourage others to think again or to think along with you. The third section is about creating communities of lifelong learners. A key to getting the most from this book is the different mindsets that Philip Tetlock discovered. Here’s Grant’s brief description from Think Again.“Two decades ago my colleague Phil Tetlock discovered something peculiar. As we think and talk, we often slip into the mindsets of three different professions: preachers, prosecutors, and politicians. In each of these modes, we take on a particular identity and use a distinct set of tools. We go into preacher mode when our sacred beliefs are in jeopardy: we deliver sermons to protect and promote our ideals. We enter prosecutor mode when we recognize flaws in other people’s reasoning: we marshal arguments to prove them wrong and win our case. We shift into politician mode when we’re seeking to win over an audience: we campaign and lobby for the approval of our constituents. The risk is that we become so wrapped up in preaching that we’re right, prosecuting others who are wrong, and politicking for support that we don’t bother to rethink our own views.”Grant uses Tetlock’s terms for the different mindsets. I found digging around on the web and in the scholarly literature for more on the mindsets helped me squeeze even more value from this book. This is not a book where you can skip around and get much value. The description of thinking in the first section sets up later lessons and insights. The second section builds on the first and applies the lessons to debate and persuasion. The third section builds on the first two. It extends the basic mindset idea to groups. Suggestion. As a warmup for Think Again, take a minute to read a Farnam Street blog post: "Jeff Bezos on Why People that Are Often Right Change Their Minds Often."In A NutshellThink Again is an excellent book that will give you techniques you can use to think more effectively at work and everywhere else. You’ll get more from the book if you do a little bit of homework. Learn about Tetlock’s mindsets and the general idea of changing your mind as a way of thinking.

Grant, A. M. (2021). Think again: The power of knowing what you don’t know. Viking.Adam Grant is an organizational psychologist and bestselling author.Research and storytelling are used to describe thinking, providing a rationale for curiosity, openness, and learning. A number of biases are explored: Confirmation bias: seeing what we expect to see; desirability bias: seeing what we want to see; binary bias: seeking clarity and closure by simplifying a complex continuum into two categories; armchair quarterback - confidence exceeding competence and imposter syndrome - competence exceeding confidence. Instead of cognitive flexibility described as the movement from "one extreme to the other as the occasion requires," when confronted with new ideas, people can go into different modes of thinking: Preacher mode when our sacred beliefs are in jeopardy; Prosecutor mode when we recognize flaws in other people's reasoning; and Politician mode when we're seeking to win over an audience. Exploring literature on debate and negotiations, Grant observed that good negotiators mapped out a series of possible dance steps focused primarily on finding common ground. Fewer reasons were given to support negotiators' case because, "The more reasons we put on the table, the easier it is for people to discard the shakiest one." Negotiators rarely went on offense or defense, instead, questions and genuine curiosity about the other's point of view was key. A fallacy of social media is that exposure to different points of view will open our eyes to difference, Grant noted: ""Knowing another side exists isn't sufficient to leave preachers doubting whether they're on the right side of morality, prosecutors questioning whether they're on the right side of the case, or politicians wondering whether they're on the right side of history. Hearing an opposing opinion doesn't necessarily motivate you to rethink your own stance; it makes it easier for you to stick to your guns. " Changing what we think is more difficult than we might assume. Website includes a quiz and an book discussion guide.Reading an Adam Grant book is like drinking from a fire hose, the way he connects the dots between disparate research and uses illustrations to amplify his ideas. He doesn't provide pat answers or techniques but instead describes the importance of learning to rethink. This book was published in 2021, by this time we were immersed in the language of alternative facts, conspiracy theories, and gaslighting techniques. Beyond the disruptions related to truth and what we know, divisiveness separated people into various and often oppositional camps. Grant reminds that being open and able to entertain alternative viewpoints while allowing others to do likewise is essential. This would be a good text for courses related to communication, ways of knowing, or teamwork.