David McRaney is a science journalist, author, and host of the You Are Not So Smart podcast. He shares 5 key insights from his new book, How Minds Change: The Surprising Science of Belief, Opinion, and Persuasion.

How Minds Change: The Surprising Science of Belief, Opinion, and Persuasion

Persuasion is not coercion. It is also not an attempt to defeat your intellectual opponent with facts or moral superiority, nor is it a debate with a winner or a loser. Persuasion is leading a person along in stages, helping them to better understand their own thinking and how it could align with the message at hand. You can’t persuade another person to change their mind if that person doesn’t want to do so, and the techniques that work the best focus on a person’s motivations more than their conclusions. In many ways, persuasion is mostly encouraging people to realize that change is possible.

1. Persuasion is not coercion.

Ultimately, all persuasion is self-persuasion. People change (or refuse to do so) based on their desires, motivations, and internal counterarguing. By focusing on these factors, an argument becomes more likely to change minds.

Beliefs aren’t ideas stored in your brain, possessions on a shelf, or files in a biological computer. Belief is a process. To believe or doubt is the result of neurons in associative networks delivering an emergent sensation of certainty, or lack thereof. The speed of change is inversely proportional to the strength of our certainty, and certainty is a feeling: somewhere between an emotion and a mood, more akin to hunger than to logic. Persuasion, no matter the source, is a force that affects that feeling.“Ultimately, all persuasion is self-persuasion.”

2. Certainty is an emotion.

Brains resist change to some degree because updating when you shouldn’t is dangerous (you might become wrong). But since not updating when you should is also dangerous (you might stay wrong), the brain walks a tightrope, changing its mind carefully given a variety of motivations and goals.

3. Social death is greater than physical death.

The strongest motivation to resist change is the fear of shame and ostracism. As social primates, humans value being good members of their groups much more than they value being right—factually, morally, or otherwise—so much so that as long as we have a group that satisfies our needs, we will choose to be wrong if it keeps us in good standing with our peers.For the ideas that identify us as members of a group, we want to seem trustworthy, and reputation management as a trustworthy individual often supersedes most other concerns, including our mortality.

“The brain walks a tightrope, changing its mind carefully given a variety of motivations and goals.”

Disambiguation is what brains do when confronted with novelty and uncertainty. We use what we think we know to disambiguate the ambiguous. I love that term, especially because it comes from reading comprehension: the act of deriving meaning through context when a word, phrase, or entire essay could be interpreted in many ways.

4. Disambiguation leads to naïve realism.

There’s a term in psychology that pairs well with disambiguation “naïve realism.” This is the certainty one feels when blind to the fact that you are disambiguating, meaning your interpretation doesn’t feel like an interpretation. Since subjectivity often feels like objectivity, naïve realism makes it seem as though the best way to change people’s minds is to show them the facts that support your view, because anyone else who has read the things you have read or seen the things you have seen will naturally see things your way, given that they’ve pondered the matter as thoughtfully as you have.

Therefore, you assume that anyone who disagrees with your conclusions probably just doesn’t have all the facts. If they did, they’d already be seeing the world as you do.This is why you continue to ineffectually copy and paste links from all of your most trusted sources when arguing points with those who seem misguided, crazy, uninformed, or plain wrong. The problem is that this is exactly the same approach that the other side thinks will work on you.

“Since subjectivity often feels like objectivity, naïve realism makes it seem as though the best way to change people’s minds is to show them the facts that support your view.”

Imagine attempting to reach the Moon with a ladder and, upon failing, giving up in frustration because now you believe the Moon is unreachable. When we use the wrong tools and approaches, the people on the other side of the issues we care about can seem impossible to reach. That’s why I used to avoid arguing about politics, superstitions, or conspiracy theories, but I changed my mind about how minds change (and how to change them) after meeting the experts and activists who not only showed me a better way, but also explained the science behind why it works.

5. No one is unreachable.

Even among the people who seem furthest away from what you consider the ground truth, change is a moonshot away once you understand the nature of resistance and the proper techniques to avoid it. The ability to change our minds, update our assumptions, and entertain other points of view is one of our greatest strengths. It is an evolved ability that comes free with every copy of the human brain. To leverage that strength, we must avoid debate and start by having conversations.

Debates have winners and losers, and no one wants to be a loser. But if both sides feel safe to explore their reasoning, to think about their own thinking, to explore their motivations, then we can each avoid the dead-end goal of winning an argument. Instead, we can pursue the shared goal of learning the truth.

“We must avoid debate and start having conversations. Debates have winners and losers, and no one wants to be a loser. But if both sides feel safe to explore their reasoning, to think about their own thinking, to explore their motivations, we can avoid the dead-end goal of winning the argument.”-David McRaney

Author Quote

Science journalist David McRaney shares 5 key insights from his new book, How Minds Change: The Surprising Science of Belief, Opinion, and Persuasion.

Understand yourself and those around you.

psychology

Psychology

philosophy

Philosophy

personaldevelopment

Personal Development

problemsolving

Problem Solving

communication

Communication

“Faith must be based upon certainty. There must be definite knowledge of God’s purpose and will. Without that there can be no true faith.” - Alexander R. Hay (pg. 4) “Every Christian has been positioned forever in the risen Lord by spiritual birth. But only the believer who knows, grows. It is faith in the facts of our position that gives us the daily benefits of growth in our condition.” (pg. 78)

Faith

“Our hope for victory over sin is not, ‘Christ plus my efforts,’ but, ‘Christ plus my receiving.’ To receive victory from Him is to believe His Word that solely by His grace He is, this moment, freeing us from the dominion of sin. And to believe on Him in this way is to recognize that He is doing for us what we cannot do for ourselves.” - Charles Trumbullpg. 21

Preparation 

Our reckoning on the finished work of our death to sin, in Christ at Calvary, Is God's one way of deliverance - there is no other way because that is the way He did it. We learned not to add a finished work in the matter of Justification, and now we must learn not to add to the finished work of emancipation. We will be freed when we enter His prepared freedom - there is no other.

For most of us, It is time to stop asking God for help. He didn't help us to be saved, and He doesn't intend to help us live the Christian life.Immaturity considers the Lord Jesus a Helper.Maturity knows Him to be Life itself.God is not trusted, not honored, in our continually asking Him for help. In the face of "my God shall supply all your need according to his riches in glory by Christ Jesus" (Phil. 4:19), how can we beg for help? Our responsibility is to see in the Word all that is ours in Christ, and then thank and trust Him for that which we need.pg. 65

Help

It is true that the downward path (the negative side) has been the consequence both of the workings of self and the tactics of the enemy. Nevertheless, it is also true that the Father has seen to it that it happened, in order that the hunger caused through failure might be satisfied in the Lord Jesus Christ. He knows what needs we need to keep us needy! pg. 251

Failure Recognized

Our Father takes us down until the self-life is uncovered and then up as the truth of the Christ-life discovered. This spiritual principle cannot be circumvented. "Beloved, do not be surprised at the firery ordeal among you, which comes upon you for your testing, as though some strange thing were happening to you." - 1 Peter 4:12pg. 255

All through the years of defeat, we have been slowly learning that the harder we tried to live the Christian life the deeper we came under the dominion of the law of sin. We tried to "be” we tried to "do,” and there was nothing but failure year in and year out.As long as we depended on our own resources, all we produced was sin. But in the midst of our wretched attempts to be delivered from the "body of this death” (Romans 7:24), our faithful Father was teaching us what we had to know for our freedom in Christ: self is our greatest enemy, Christ is our only hope (Philippians 1:21).(pg. 208)

Defeat And Victory! 

When we reckon ourselves alive to God in our risen Lord, we are thereby taking our position as seated with Him in the heavenlies. We know that the anchor and source of our life is safely and eternally hid with Christ in God. We are assured that nothing, and no one, can touch us apart from His blessed will. Our attitude is that of looking down on all that He takes us through-we are not under His circumstances, but above them all in our victorious Lord. Standing in our position, we learn in whatever state we are in,"to be content"; we learn how to be abased, and we learn how to abound.

LIVE POSITIONALLY"CRUCIFIED, RISEN, SEATED"(Galatians 2:20; Ephesians 2:6)LIVE POSITIVELY"FULLY PERSUADED"(Romans 14:5)LIVE POSSESSIVELY"ALL THINGS ARE YOURS"(1 Corinthians 3:21)LIVE TRIUMPHANTLY"MORE THAN CONQUERORS"(Romans 8:37)

Five volumes on sanctification published under one cover, presenting biblical foundations and keys to spiritual growth in Christ. It includes "Abide Above", "The Green Letters", "The Ground of Growth", "The Principle of Position", and "The Reckoning That Counts".

religionandspirituality

Religion & Spirituality

books

Books

"Not I, but Christ." That brief phrase reflects our complete dependency on Jesus for everything that the Christian life is about, from right standing with God, to spiritual growth, to personal well being, to practical service. In four words, it captures the essence and sweep of The Complete Green Letters.The language of The Complete Green Letters may have a classic flavor, but the remarkable insight and spiritual penetration are thoroughly and refreshingly contemporary. Drawing from the spiritual heritage of the Keswick Convention, these beloved writings by Miles J. Stanford comment powerfully on the true nature of spirituality. Here in one volume, in logical order, are: <ul><li>The Green Letters: Principles of Spiritual Growth</li><li>The Principle of Position: Foundations of Spiritual Growth</li><li>The Ground of Growth: The Christian's Relationship to the Cross and the Risen Christ</li><li>The Reckoning That Counts: The Realization of Spiritual Growth</li><li>Abide Above: A Guide to Spiritual Growth</li></ul>A sound apprehension of the deeper life can make the difference between progress or frustration, peace or turmoil. If you desire a better understanding of what it means to serve Christ, his church, and the world around you, The Complete Green Letters shines light on the path of spiritual growth.

Miles J. Stanford

The Complete Green Letters

First Principles delves into the history of American evolution and highlights how the parents of modern thinking were inspired by Roman and Greek philosophy in their mindset, military actions, views of the world, and many more.The influence of Greek and Roman political thought on America is a subject that historians debated for centuries. Some argue that it was minimal at best, while others claim it was pervasive throughout our nation’s early years.

First Principles - Book Summary

Regardless of the extent to which these ideas influenced our founders, First Principles prove that they had an undeniable impact on the formation of our republic.It is no secret that ancient civilizations deeply influenced America’s founding fathers when creating their own country’s system of government. It was not only because they believed in strong republican values; these two cultures also provided a model for how such a system could work in practice.

<ul><li>Washington’s education was deeply rooted in Roman ideologies. </li><li>Greek philosophers also influenced American thinkers. </li><li>Classicism and the idea of virtue slowly died as Americans sought freedom for all.</li></ul>Now, let’s explore these lessons in depth and learn more about American culture and history.

To learn more about these systems, we’ll look at three of the most relevant lessons from this book:

It is often the Greek philosophy and the Greek thinkers that occupy the first spots in any history debate or at an elite table. Greek ideologies shaped the world as we know it, paved the way for democracy, and shaped ideologies forever. However, Roman philosophers and their culture also had plenty to do with how America grew to be today. Rome and its emperors shaped leading figures like Washington and many revolutionary Americans. They considered Cicero a great orator and an idol to learn from.

Lesson 1: One of America’s leading figures was highly inspired by Roman emperors.

Revolutionary Americans considered that Rome had achieved the greatest level a state can hope for. Washington, a military genius, identified with Cato, a figure known for their virtue and for not giving in to the aristocracy, but rather fighting against corruption.Washington strived to become such a figure and take America to the highest forms of a republic. To defeat the British, he imprisoned some of the great Roman generals, Fabius and Cincinnatus. He studied their strategies and tried to implement them, almost by impersonating them.

The founders believed that the democratic form of government found in ancient Greece and Rome was an ideal model for America, which had just broken free from Great Britain. They also wanted to ensure that the United States would be able to withstand any future threats from European powers. In order for this to happen, America needed both a strong military and a well-educated citizenry who were capable of deciding matters of the state through reasoned deliberation rather than violence or coercion.

Lesson 2: The founding fathers of America found inspiration in Roman and Greek ways of thinking.

Jefferson, Washington, J. Adams and many others looked for inspiration in these ancient European states. Jefferson, in particular, was a fan of Epicurus, Euripides, and many other Greek philosophers that shaped his way of thinking.In fact, Epicurus had a vision of life that Jefferson shared profoundly. We can notice that in the Declaration of Independence, he states that all humans are created equal and they have the right to pursue happiness. These concepts are central to the Epicurean philosophy.

The early nineteenth century marked a time of great change in American culture. The Enlightenment gave way to Romanticism, and classicism was replaced by a rather rational way of viewing things. This shift in cultural focus was reflected in the principles that guided the people and their rulers. While Jefferson’s presidency and Madison’s afterward were marked by a return to classicism, it soon became an object of ridicule.

Lesson 3: The leading figures of America saw radical changes from one mandate to the other.

The masses were seeking more rational views of the world and free land. People also began to view slavery as a ridiculous concept compared to the American principle of freedom for all.As reason and rationality gave way to emotion in the nineteenth century, classicism slowly died out of fashion. Virtue was no longer a guiding light for every endeavor, while free labor and a fairer world were the true aspirations now.

In First Principles, Thomas Ricks explains how Greek and Roman philosophers altogether shaped America as we know it today. In ancient philosophy, it was only through hard work and constant vigilance that man could be made virtuous enough to live freely and happily. This notion is closely linked with different waves of culture that America had experienced through its shaping process.

First Principles – Book Review

The book manages to examine how America’s Founding Fathers used classical philosophy in their own political theory. The essays address topics such as Jefferson’s views on slavery, Washington’s influence on economic policy, and Adams’ role in shaping foreign policy.

The 30-year-old historian who enjoys a good read, the 50-year-old republican who wants to extend their knowledge in the field of American history, or the 45-year-old person who wants to find out more about the lives and views of the Founding Fathers of America.

Who would I recommend the First Principles to?

“Public Virtue cannot exist in a Nation without private, and public Virtue is the only Founsation of Republics. There must be apositive Passion for the public good, the public Interest, Honour, Power, and Glory, established in the Minds of the People, or there can be no Republican Government, nor any real Liberty.”-Thomas E. Ricks

First Principles summary delves into the history of American evolution and how Roman and Greek philosophy inspired its first leaders.

history

History

politics

Politics

leadershipandmanagement

Leadership & Management

artsandculture

Society, Arts & Culture

First Principles Summary

Everything we do in life can be explained as a struggle to win more clout in a community we care about. Generally status can be gained in 3 ways:
<ul>
<li>Dominance: Impose your will through force. This applies to dictators as much as verbally abusive partners.</li>
<li>Virtue: Win points by being better. Think Michelle Obama or Mahatma Gandhi.</li>
<li>Competence: Be the winner. In business like Donald Trump. Or in beauty like the Instagram models.</li>
</ul>
Status can be tied to narcissism and other negative traits, but it's the driver behind all our actions, including the positive. We could have never invented anything without it.

Life Is A Status Game

When we consider conscience, the ultimate judge in our head, can also be considered a form of a status game. Conscience is just an imagined, a simulated game. We subconsciously imagine what others would think about our actions.That's why we are proud about ourselves when we do something good even when we are alone. Or we feel shame when we don't raise to the standards of our imaginary audience.

Conscience Is A Status Game

The more status games one plays the more happy (s)he will be. This means being part of more groups you care about: your professional circle, family, extended family, interest groups, friends etc. The larger the number of groups, the more opportunity for scoring status points.

Happiness Depends On How Many Status Games Are On

Interesting perspective about a key driver in our lives. 

From the Sunday Times bestselling author of The Science of Storytelling comes a bold and ambitious investigation of status that will redefine human culture for our times There's something humans desire even more than gold. It's a fundamental drive that's common to all humanity, cutting across race, gender, age and culture. Our need for it is such that exactly how much of it we possess dramatically effects not only our happiness and well-being but also our physical health. It'sstatus, argues Will Storr. You can't understand human behaviour without understanding The Status Game. This game, which we are all playing, is not only the secret of our success, but also of our most evil behaviour. Everything is subordinate to status, and humans aren't unique in our complicity with it. By reflecting on the various ways humans negotiate this game - through status hierarchies, values, myths and sacred markers, Storr gives readers a master class in this most malevolent of social mysteries.

mindfulness

Mindfulness

'Will Storr is one of our best journalists of ideas ... The Status Game might be his best yet' James Marriott, Books of the Year, The Times What drives our political and moral beliefs? What makes us like some things and dislike others? What shapes how we behave, and misbehave, in groups? What makes you, you? For centuries, philosophers and scholars have described human behaviour in terms of sex, power and money. In The Status Game, bestselling author Will Storr radically turns this thinking on its head by arguing that it is our irrepressible craving for status that ultimately defines who we are. From the era of the hunter-gatherer to today, when we exist as workers in the globalised economy and citizens of online worlds, the need for status has always been wired into us. A wealth of research shows that how much of it we possess dramatically affects not only our happiness and wellbeing but also our physical health - and without sufficient status, we become more ill, and live shorter lives. It's an unconscious obsession that drives the best and worst of us: our innovation, arts and civilisation as well as our murders, wars and genocides. But why is status such an all-consuming prize? What happens if it's taken away from us? And how can our unquenchable thirst for it explain cults, moral panics, conspiracy theories, the rise of social media and the 'culture wars' of today? On a breathtaking journey through time and culture, The Status Game offers a sweeping rethink of human psychology that will change how you see others - and how you see yourself.

Will Storr

The Status Game

The Worldly Philosophers is your hands-on guide to economics, how the world works overall but especially from a financial point of view, what are the social and economic systems that existed throughout history, and how certain people’s concepts got to shape the world we know today.The Worldly Philosophers is a comprehensive and engaging book that provides readers with a thorough understanding of the development of modern economic philosophy. The book received favorable reviews from the New York Times. And it has received praise from various other publications as well.

The Worldly Philosophers – Book Summary

In a nutshell, it presents the world order from an economical point of view. Everything regarding macroeconomics these days is mathematical, social, political, and overall influenced by various events dating from centuries ago, all the way to our days.The book follows these events and presents the natural evolution of humanity in relation to economics. It also highlights the major political and social winds and concepts that helped shape our world. And traces the roots of today’s socio-economical conditions.

<ul><li>All economists sought to understand one common concept: how society works.</li><li>A market ruled by tradition, coercion, and rules of the past is deemed to crash.</li><li>Adam Smith is considered the father of modern economics due to his invaluable theory presented in 1776.</li></ul>Economics is not complicated. But it’s fun and relevant. Don’t believe me? Let’s explore these three lessons in detail and you’ll see for yourself!

Here are three of the best lessons from the book:

Regardless of the theories they produced, every economist wanted to find out how to organize a society in the best way, economically and socially speaking. The economists’ quest for this holy grail underlies their seemingly disparate approaches and theories. Yet their shared desire has led them to develop numerous similar ideas.We can broadly divide economic theory into two categories: microeconomics and macroeconomics. Microeconomics focuses on individual markets and how changes in prices, supply and demand affect them.

Lesson 1: Regardless of their theories, every economist wanted to find out the single best way to organize a society.

Macroeconomics focuses on aggregating these individual markets into a single economy that we can measure in terms of total output, total employment, price levels, etc.The economists who have had the greatest impact on our lives tried their best to measure these two economic concepts and find a way to integrate them into a successful formula for our society.

The book looks at the ideas of Karl Marx, Adam Smith, John Stuart Mill, David Ricardo, Thorstein Veblen, Jevons, Malthus, Marshall and John Maynard Keynes. And reaches the idea that all economists sought to understand the same main idea: how humans behave in a society.

History proves once again to be the teller of our present and future. And the best metric to analyze our actions and their consequences today. Actions of the past show how rulers who enforce their visions upon citizens and interfere with the economy and deemed to fall.The 5-year economic plans in the Soviet Union, the forced labor in Egypt, or the enforced traditions and customs in China or India over the economic systems show that states are better left outside the economic machine. People should have freedom of choice in their economic endeavors.

Lesson 2: Efficient markets are driven by profits, freedom of choice and effective institutions.

When states interfere, it should be only to create a legal and efficient environment for these markets to coexist in peace. No forced traditions, labor, or plans will do well in the long run, because people do not work efficiently under such rules.To build efficient markets, states should build the right legal structures and interfere as rarely as possible. Because markets are efficient and regulate themselves. Adam Smith highly popularized this theory. However, it looks true when you look at the highly efficient markets today compared to the ones from the past century.

Many consider Adam Smith as the father of modern economics. That’s because he popularized a highly relevant piece of writing in 1776 titled “The Wealth of Nations”. This paper created a theory that provides a simple answer for how markets are highly efficient. And they regulate themselves through supply and demand.The theory advocates for the Invisible Hand Mechanism, a concept that popularized the idea of a market determined by supply and demand in which states must not interfere. But only regulate what needs to be regulated, legally speaking.

Lesson 3: Adam Smith popularized a famous theory that is as relevant today as it was in 1776.

This market’s equilibrium point is reached at the intersection between the two forces. People set prices themselves, and due to competition, they will lower as much as they need to, or grow accordingly.This theory also states that societies will grow at their own pace. And that they develop in time due to these natural laws of economics. He also popularized the Law of Population. The law states that people will have children at different times. But mostly only during good economic conditions.

The Worldly Philosophers covers the lives and works of many of the most influential economists in history, providing detailed biographical information about each one and explaining what their contributions were. It also provides an overview of how economic thought has developed over time and how it has affected our world. This book would be excellent for anyone who wants to learn more about how modern economics has evolved over time.

The Worldly Philosophers – Book Review

The 30-year-old person who is passionate about economics and the biographies of major influential figures in the economy, the 22-year-old student who wants to study outside their curricula, or the 34-year-old stock market investor who wants to gain a deeper understanding of the field by studying macroeconomics from its fundamentals.

Who would I recommend The Worldly Philosophers to?

“As long as custom and command ruled the world, the problem of riches and poverty hardly struck the earlier philosophers at all, other than to be accepted with a sign or railed at as another sign of man’s inner worthlessness”-Robert L. Heilbroner

The Worldly Philosophers - Book Review (Economics)

The Worldly Philosophers is your hands-on guide to economics: how the world works overall but especially from a financial point of view

Discover the world of business and economics.

economics

Economics

moneyandinvestments

Money & Investments

The Worldly Philosophers Summary

Stoic passions are various forms of emotional suffering in Stoicism. A passion is a disturbing and misleading force in the mind which occurs because of a failure to reason correctly. For Chrysippus, a famous Stoic philosopher, the passions are evaluative judgements. A person experiencing such an emotion has incorrectly valued an indifferent thing. A fault of judgement, some false notion of good or evil, lies at the root of each passion.

These states of feeling are disturbances of mental health which upset the natural balance of the soul. They are harmful because they conflict with right reason. The ideal Stoic would instead measure things at their real value, and see that the passions are not natural. To be free of the passions is to have a happiness which is self-contained. There would be nothing to fear - for unreason is the only evil; no cause for anger - for others cannot harm you.

The Stoics beginning with Zeno (the founder of the Stoic philosophy) arranged the passions under four headings:<ul><li>Distress - an irrational contraction, or a fresh opinion that something bad is present, at which people think it right to be depressed</li><li>Fear - an irrational aversion, or avoidance of an expected danger</li><li>Lust - an irrational desire, or pursuit of an expected good but in reality bad</li><li>Delight - an irrational swelling, or a fresh opinion that something good is present, at which people think it right to be elated</li></ul>

Two of these passions (distress and delight) refer to emotions currently present, and two of these (fear and lust) refer to emotions directed at the future. Thus there are just two states directed at the prospect of good and evil, but subdivided as to whether they are present or future.

Numerous subdivisions of the same class are brought under the head of the separate passions.<ul><li>Distress - envy, rivalry, jealousy, anxiety, depression</li><li>Fear - sluggishness, shame, fright</li><li>Lust - anger, rage, hatred</li><li>Delight - malice, rapture, ostentation</li></ul>

Subdivisions 

The wise person is someone who is free from passions. Instead, the sage experiences good-feelings which are clear-headed. These emotional impulses are the correct rational emotions. The Stoics listed the good-feelings under the headings of joy, wish, and caution. Thus if something is present which is a genuine good, then the wise person experiences an uplift in the soul - joy. The Stoics also subdivided the good-feelings.<ul><li>Joy - enjoyment, cheerfulness, good spirits</li><li>Wish - good intent, goodwill, welcoming, love</li><li>Caution - moral shame, reverence</li></ul>

Stoic passions

[W]hen an observer doesn’t immediately turn what his senses convey to him into language, into the vocabulary and syntactical framework we all employ when trying to define our experiences, there’s a much greater opportunity for minor details, which might at first seem unimportant, to remain alive in the foreground of an impression, where, later, they might deepen the meaning of an experience.

The lesson to be learned here is not just […] to pay closer attention to what [is] going on around [us], if [we hope] to have a deeper understanding of the event, but to remain in a state of suspended mental analysis while observing all that is happening – resisting the urge to define or summarize. To step away from the familiar compulsion to understand.

If the first lesson in learning how to see more deeply into a landscape [is] to be continuously attentive, and to stifle the urge to stand outside the event, to instead stay within the event, leaving its significance to be resolved later; the second lesson [is] to notice how often [we ask our] body to defer to the dictates of [our] mind, how [our] body’s extraordinary ability to discern textures and perfumes, to discriminate among tones and colors in the world outside itself, [is] dismissed by the rational mind.

The ear hears the song of a vesper sparrow, and then hears the song again, and knows that the second time it is a different vesper sparrow singing. The mind, pleased with itself for identifying those notes as the song if a vesper sparrow, is too preoccupied with its summary to notice what the ear is still offering. The mind is making no use of the body’s ability to be discerning about sounds. And so the mind’s knowledge of the place remains superficial.

Many people have written about how, generally speaking, indigenous people seem to pick up more information traversing a landscape than an outsider, someone from a culture that no longer highly values physical intimacy with a place, that regards this sort of sensitivity as a ‘primitive’ attribute, something a visitor from an ‘advanced’ culture would be comfortable believing he had actually outgrown.

Existential loneliness and a sense that one’s life is inconsequential, both of which are hallmarks of modern civilizations, seem to me to derive in part from our abandoning a belief in the therapeutic dimensions of a relationship with place. A continually refreshed sense of the unplumbable complexity of patterns in the natural world, patterns that are ever present and discernible, and which incorporate the observer, undermine the feeling that one is alone in the world, or meaningless in it.

The effort to know a place deeply is, ultimately, an expression of the human desire to belong, to fit somewhere […] And every natural place, to my mind, is open to being known. And somewhere in this process a person begins to sense that they themselves are becoming known, so that when they are absent from that place they know that place misses them. And this reciprocity, to know and be known, reinforces a sense that one is necessary in the world.

Perhaps the first rule of everything we endeavor to do is to pay attention. Perhaps the second is to be patient. And perhaps a third is to be attentive to what the body knows.

“Place and a mind may interpenetrate till the nature of both is altered.” - Nan Shepherd

scienceandnature

Science & Nature

Barry Lopez on the Cure for Our Existential Loneliness and the Three Tenets of a Full Life

The triple filter test refers to an anecdote of the great Greek philosopher, Socrates. The story tells that, one day, one of Socrates’ disciples was quite agitated. He told Socrates that he had just met one of Socrates’ friends and that he had spoken badly of him.Socrates asked the man to calm down. After thinking for a moment, he asked him to wait a minute. Before listening to what he had to say, he told him, the message had to go through a triple filter test. If the message didn’t pass the test, it wasn’t worthy of being heard.

The “Worthy Of Being Said/Heard” Test

As he always did, the Greek philosopher asked his anxious disciple a question: “Are you absolutely sure that what you’re going to tell me is true?” The disciple thought for a moment. In fact, he couldn’t be sure if what his friend had told him was actually malicious. It was a matter of perspective. “So you do not know if everything he said about me is true or not,” said the philosopher. The disciple had to admit that he didn’t.

Filter #1: Is It True?

Then, Socrates asked him a second question:“Is what you’re going to tell me good or not?” The disciple replied that, evidently, it wasn’t good at all. In fact, it was quite the opposite. He believed that what he was going to share with the philosopher would cause him discomfort and distress. Thus, Socrates said to him: “You’re going to tell me something bad, but you’re not completely sure it’s true”. The disciple admitted that this was the case.

Filter #2: Is It Good?

Then, Socrates asked the third and final question: “Is what you have to say about my friend going to help me in any way?” The disciple hesitated. He really didn’t know if that information was useful or not. Maybe it would distance him from his friend, but considering that he wasn’t sure whether it was true or not, maybe it wasn’t useful at all.

Filter #3: Is It Useful?

In the end, the philosopher refused to listen to what his disciple wanted to tell him. “If what you want to tell me isn’t true, isn’t good, and isn’t even useful, why would I want to hear it?” he finally told his disciple.Truth, goodness, and usefulness are the foundation of Socrates’ triple filter test. Socrates thought that a person must ask themselves the following questions before they say anything: “Am I sure that what I am going to say is true?”, “Is what I’m going to say a good thing?”, and “Do I really need to say it and is it useful?”

Truth, Goodness And Usefulness

In everyday life, it’s not easy to define the true, the good, and the necessary. These are abstract concepts that are sometimes difficult to apply. That’s why there are also some additional questions that can help us when it comes to applying the triple filter test.

How to apply the triple filter test

<ul><li>Do I know for a fact that this information is true? </li><li>Can I bet on it? </li><li>Will I be able to prove it to anyone? </li><li>Am I willing to compromise my reputation over this?</li></ul>

Truth-Filtering Questions To Ask

<ul><li>Does this information benefit me or the other person? </li><li>Will it make them or me a better person and evoke positive emotions? </li><li>Will the situation of those involved improve?</li></ul>

Goodness-Filtering Questions To Ask

<ul><li>By knowing this information, will that person’s life or my life improve?</li><li>Can that person take any practical action regarding this information or message?</li><li>In what way does not knowing this information hurt or affect the other person?</li></ul>

Usefulness-Filtering Questions To Ask

The triple filter test is particularly oriented at rumors or gossip. Applying it allows us to put a stop to annoying gossip and rumors that sometimes haunt us, such as those we see in social networks. But, more importantly, the test is a great life lesson and an excellent guide, for anything and everything that we’re going to say and for anything and everything that we’re going to listen to.

“You Know You Love Me. XOXO, Gossip Girl.”

Don’t spread with your mouth what your eyes didn’t see.(or, variant)What you don’t see with your eyes, don’t witness with your mouth.

The tongue weighs practically nothing, but so few people can hold it.

Those who gossip with you, will gossip about you.

Socrates’ triple filter test is an excellent guide, both for what we’re going to say and for what we’re going to listen to. Gossip Girl, anyone?

The triple filter test refers to an anecdote of the great Greek philosopher, Socrates. Many consider this anecdote a great life lesson. Click to learn more!

Socrates’ Triple Filter Test

1. e4/d42. threaten something3. knight before bishop4. most suitable square once for all5. pawn move not more than two6. no queen move7. castle early and kingside8. atleast one pawn in the centre9. control the centre10. no sacrifice without adequate reason<ul><li>pawn sacrifice for advantage </li><li>deflect the queen</li><li>prevent castling</li><li>build up a strong attack</li></ul>

10 practical rules of opening

1. how does it affect the centre?2. how does it fit in with the development of my other pieces and pawns?

2 question on each move of the opening

1. pawn structure2. mobility3. king safety4. material5. combinations

5 factors of evaluation

1. strong point: holding the e5 pawn2. giving up e5 pawn for counter-attack to white give up its e4 pawn

2 types of defense by black in e4 e5

Not a list of moves, but simple and logical explanations of opening systems.

creativity

Creativity

entertainment

Entertainment

Explains the objectives of all openings and provides illustrations of King Pawn, Queen Pawn, and irregular openings.

Reuben Fine

The Ideas Behind the Chess Openings

From the time he learnt to move pieces on a chessboard as a six-year old, Vishy – as Anand is fondly called – has racked up innumerable accolades. The first World Chess Champion from Asia, he emerged onto the world stage when chess was largely a Soviet preserve, climbed the ranks to become World No. 1, bagged five World Championship titles and won tournaments across all formats of the game. A peerless ambassador of chess, his is one of the most revered names in the sport.

Introduction

In Mind Master, Vishy looks back on a lifetime of games played, opponents tackled and circumstances overcome, and draws from its depths significant tools that will help every reader navigate life’s challenges:<ul><li>What role do tactics and strategy play in the preparation for</li><li>achieving a goal?</li><li>How can emotions be harnessed to your advantage in tricky</li><li>situations?</li><li>What precautions should you take before you decide to leave your</li><li>comfort zone and embrace risk?</li><li>What do you need to do to stay relevant in the face of rapidly</li><li>changing realities?</li><li>Is unlearning really the only way to learn?</li></ul>

As a long-term strategy, being predictable is not of much advantage – for your career or business or even for yourself. Once in a while, you’ve got to take the counter-intuitive path, but not without owning responsibility for the consequences – and certainly not without preparation. In such situations, your attitude should trump the decision itself. When you focus on previously unconsidered solutions to reach your end goal, don’t let your mind wallow in indecision or imagined negative outcomes. Instead, push through with execution.

1 DITCHING THE LADDER
Of Gut, Heart and a Winning Idea

When I played this game with Manuel Aaron, my obsession with winning the Grandmaster title was still some years away. At the same time, my win was a culmination of everything I had learnt and worked for until then, with little else weighing on my mind. There’s something to be said about working towards achieving a goal without obsessing over how far you’re from it or how hopelessly you’re missing the mark each time. Once you shut out the clamor of the result and simply persevere, success is bound to be yours.

2 STICKY NOTES
Madras, Manila, Madrid and Everything in Between

Here’s a lesson in serendipity and limitless learning. Nothing you do, however unconnected it is to your livelihood or your life’s goal, goes waste. You never know when an idea that you’ve read about or heard of, or an activity you’ve dabbled in, will pay off. It’s wise, then, to keep your interests and your learning as varied and broad as you can.

3 THE ART OF REMEMBERING
Hooks, Hacks and Serendipity

Emotions tend to get in the way of clear thinking. Whether it’s impatience, frustration, fury, self-loathing or even premature elation – allowing these to consume the mind results in a loss of focus and distraction from learning, and keeps you from taking the right decisions and achieving your goal. Training your mind to take a step back at the crucial moment and developing cues to organize your thoughts is more advantageous than making a move while your mind is in turmoil.

4 WIN SOME, LOSE SOME
Emotions and the Power of Objectivity

For your strategy to be effective, the preparation you put into every aspect to make your tactics work efficiently is key. Your approach cannot be unidimensional. Whether you’re taking in external perspectives, keeping your mind open to varied sources of learning, visualizing difficult, unknown scenarios and tackling them head-on through practice, cultivating discipline and a routine that brings you comfort in the face of stressful situations – all of it eventually comes together to contribute to the moment of achievement.

5 GATHERING THE TROOPS
How to Make Preparation Count and Tactics Work

The best Autobiography I have ever read. Very emotional at some point, and tells about how to take win and defeat in life. We have one thing in common, both of us learn chess for first time from our mothers. 

'Doing everything admirably well matters very little if you can't finish the job.' Few people know better than Viswanathan Anand how to think strategically at lightning speed and work under immense pressure to overcome the toughest odds. From the time he learnt to move pieces on a chessboard as a six-year-old, Vishy - as Anand is fondly called - has racked up innumerable accolades. With five World Championship titles, he is a peerless ambassador of chess, and his is one of the most revered names in the sport. In Mind Master, Vishy looks back on a lifetime of games played, opponents tackled and circumstances overcome, and draws from its depths significant tools that will help every reader navigate life's challenges: What role do tactics and strategy play in the preparation for achieving a goal? How can emotions be harnessed to your advantage in tricky situations? What do you need to do to stay relevant in the face of rapidly changing realities? Is unlearning really the only way to learn? These are just some of the nuggets Vishy touches upon with characteristic wit, easy wisdom and disarming candour in this expanded edition of his critically acclaimed memoir, a delightful and invaluable exploration into the self that will thrill, inspire and motivate readers as few books have done before.

Mind Master

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