The Scout Mindset: See Things Clearly and Make Smarter Decisions

Description

Learn how to combat biases and make smarter decisions. In The Scout Mindset, Julia Galef explores two different modes of thinking, the 'soldier' and the 'scout' mindset. Unfortunately, most of us naturally have a 'soldier' mindset, were we protect our beliefs aggressively and ignore any evidence that we might be wrong. But to be right more often, we need to approach ideas more like a scout. A scout surveys the land, seeking accuracy and understanding to find all the available information - good and bad - to gain a more truthful picture. To help you make better decisions, this book will show you how to- - gather information from multiple sources - weigh up short and long term gains - overcome inherent biases - transcend tribal thinking - avoid self-deception Drawing on fascinating stories from Warren Buffett's investing strategies to subreddit threads and modern partisan politics, Galef explores why our brains try to deceive us and how to see things more clearly so we make the right decision more often.

Julia Galef is the Co-founder and President of the Center for Applied Rationality. She has run workshops around the world and for many of Silicon Valley's top tech companies including Facebook, Dropbox and Twitter. She and the Center for Applied Rationality have been featured in The New York Times Magazine, the Wall Street Journal, Fast Company, Discover and Harper's. Galef has written for Slate, Scientific American and Popular Science. She hosts the popular Rationally Speaking podcast, where she interviews thinkers such as Neil deGrasse Tyson, Sean Carroll, Phil Tetlock and Paul Bloom.

Julia Galef is one of the smartest, most exciting voices not just in American rationalism, but in American writing period. she is consistently fascinating -- journalist and New York Times bestselling author of Chasing the Scream * Johann Hari * Julia Galef is a consistently stimulating, rigorous, and incisive thinker. I greatly look forward to reading whatever she writes -- Maria Konnikova * contributing writer to The New Yorker, and New York Times bestselling author of Mastermind * When I was looking for an expert on how people change their minds, I turned to Julia Galef. Obviously, no question, and I didn't even have to seek her out. Her reputation is already well known. Galef is a great resource on this mystery because she has devoted herself both to understanding why it can seem so difficult, and to how she can help people push through the challenge and benefit from new perspectives -- David McRaney * creator of You Are Not So Smart and bestselling author of book by the same name * Julia understands human thinking with incredible clarity and she's a master at communicating that clarity to others through her writing and metaphors. I haven't stopped thinking about the scout mindset ever since I first heard Julia explain it -- Tim Urban * writer, TED speaker, creator of Wait But Why * A must read for all who have trouble saying 'I was wrong' and 'I change my mind,' which is all of us -- Michael Shermer * Author of The Moral Arc *