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

| Author: Adam Grant, 2021 |

What's it all About?

With North America more divided than ever, this is perhaps one of the most relevant books of 2021. It provides a perspective and reset that we could all use.

Many of us strive for the ability to lead others with great confidence and deep knowledge. In his book, Adam Grant takes everything we thought we knew about leadership and literally gets us to “Think Again” through real-life case studies and research mega findings. He shows why you should invest more time to finding out why you might be wrong, rather than assuming that you might be right in your leadership choices.

I enjoyed this book because of my obsession with the Dunning-Kruger effect, or the idea that the more you know—or think you know—the less likely you are to uncover creative ideas or find more productive outcomes. In fact, the Dunning-Kruger effect makes you more likely to gravitate toward information which support what you already know, while moving away from anything that goes against your beliefs.

By pulling from his own experiences and providing actionable takeaways, Grant ensures you’ll be left concerned about what you might not be considering. This read will flex and grow both your emotional and intellectual muscles. You may even end up feeling better about your actions now that you’re aware of new factors. Who doesn’t like to work with people that are open to new ideas, curious, and open to feedback?

The future lies in your ability to learn. To do this, you need to stay intentional and curious about everything. This read will help you push your skills and thinking to a new level.

As leaders progress their careers, they often surround themselves with more bootlickers than boat rockers. However, it is proven that greater success and productivity comes from the foundation of meaningful relationships and teams who feel they can safely and professionally challenge ideas.

One section of Grant’s book even filled my own confirmation bias about how we are not mind readers. The better someone can discuss their emotions, the better others can understand. When both sides approach a problem with an open mind and a curiosity about how the other feels, look out! When both people are on the same page, yet unafraid to challenge the other’s perspective, you get maximized and productive outcomes.

Favourite Quote

“It’s a sign of wisdom to avoid believing every thought that enters your mind. It’s a mark of emotional intelligence to avoid internalizing every feeling that enters your heart.”

Biggest Takeaway

On a recent podcast, my guest discussed the tough balance of imposter syndrome and overconfidence. Grant’s section on confident humility and faith in our capability reminds us that we might not be even solving the right problems, let alone finding the right solutions. He highlights the importance of trusting the process, staying curious, and being open to new ideas and information. By reading this section, you’ll learn how to trust in your confidence and always show up with an open mind.

Reviewed by: Trevor Blondeel, January 10, 2022

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Mindfulness Manufacturing

Our show is about providing listeners with real stories that come from a place of experience, transparency, and authenticity. Most importantly it’s about what we learn from these stories and applying Mindfulness in our everyday work and personal lives.
Our intention is to create an environment where people can learn through open honest discussions on how we apply Mindfulness. Although our experiences and stories come from time in a manufacturing environment hence the title “Mindfulness Manufacturing”, we still see our discussions and topics relatable to any organization or profession.

When a mistake occurs on the plant floor, your mind might jump to one question: who caused this issue, and should I write them up for their mistake? But there’s a more productive approach you could be taking—and in this episode of Mindfulness Manufacturing, guest Dr. Jake Mazulewicz breaks it all down!

With a background as a firefighter, EMT, and military paratrooper, Jake knows the challenges of high-hazard industries, and works with organizations to reduce errors and create safer, more reliable workplace environments. In this episode, Jake shares why you can’t procedularize everything, including the way you handle errors and accidents, and offers great insights and stories about how to use connection and curiosity to improve safety, address errors, and strengthen your organization.

3:35 – Procedures and policies are the work that is imagined, and on the floor is how the work actually gets done

4:19 – The work as-done is almost always radically different than the work as-imagined

5:20 – Even when you have standards and people show up wanting to do a good job, you can still see issues that need to be addressed

6:44 – There will always be areas that absolutely need to have procedures in place

8:02 – There are also adaptive jobs, which leans less into procedures and more intro troubleshooting and tacit human knowledge

10:56 – In an ideal environment, both mechanistic and adaptive models are used and respected and needed

12:11 – There are four levels, ranging from strict procedurals to looser guidelines that show what to do, but not how to do it

15:36 – Tacit knowledge gets shared through conversations

16:22 – A way to share important information is to have frontline experts record videos sharing their insights to problems, especially those that are not covered in procedures

19:44 – Through conversation and connection, more knowledge is shared

21:58 – Debriefing also plays a central role

23:45 – If you have strong discipline, you’ll find more freedom

25:31 – In most situations, errors are signals, not defects

27:07 – When an error occurs, be curious and find the deeper cause of the problem

Connect with Jake Mazulewicz

Find him on Linkedin

Visit his website