How to Think More Clearly

Uncommon insights from 5 top-level thinkers

Do you want to know how some of the smartest, most successful people in the world think?

Specifically, some of the practical steps they take to learn better and more efficiently. Well...

🤗🎉 Good news

Courtesy of ​Shane Parrish​, I've compiled some key insights from these deep thinkers:

• Adam Grant (author and organizational psychology professor)

• Tyler Cowen (economist, professor, and best-selling author)

• Barbara Oakley (well-known engineering professor)

• Adam Robinson (author and macro-trends advisor)

• Daniel Kahneman (Nobel-winning psychologist)

I got access to a transcript of Shane Parrish's interviews with these folks which led to...

An AI-curated summary

I took the transcript and asked ​Claude.ai​ to help me identify the key insights, especially ones that overlap.

Overlapping Insights

• Slow down your thinking to improve decision-making. Taking time to consider options separately rather than rushing to an intuitive judgment leads to better choices.

• It's vital to actively test your beliefs and be open to changing your mind. We should think of our views as theories or hypotheses and look for evidence that could prove them wrong.

• Reading widely, especially books that challenge your current perspectives, helps develop clearer thinking. Avoid seeking only information that confirms your existing opinions.

• Develop mastery of new tools through practice. That's how you gain true understanding. Simply reading information is not enough.

More Insights:

• Take advantage of feedback and metrics to evaluate performance and identify biases. But remember, it takes a growth mindset to make significant improvements.

• Online learning provides unprecedented access to information, but in-person mentors are still crucial for developing judgment and character.

• Surround yourself with people who share your values and support your big goals. But be wary of outsourcing thinking.

• Reduce complexity by focusing on just a few key variables. This can improve decision-making across several domains. Excess information impairs your judgments.

• There's no easy shortcut to success, and anyone who says otherwise is a fool, opportunist, or both.

• Be realistic about the limits of our human minds.

Big Takeaways

• Continuously test your beliefs

• Seek diverse perspectives

• Keep developing new skills and

• Join groups of people that support you and help you grow.

✅ My Advice

If you're not currently a member of Shane Parrish's community, you can ​join here​.

I also recommend his recently released book: ​Clear Thinking: Turning Ordinary Moments into Extraordinary Results​.