Intelligence is traditionally viewed as the ability to think and learn. Yet in a complex world, there’s another set of cognitive (认知的) skills that might matter more: the ability to rethink. Therefore, my aim in this book is to explore how rethinking happens by seeking out the most convincing evidence and some of the world’s most skilled rethinkers.

The first section focuses on opening our own minds. You’ll find out why a forward-thinking businessman got trapped in the past, how a Nobel Prize-winning scientist welcomes the joy of being wrong, how the world’s best forecasters update their views, and how an Oscar-winning filmmaker has productive fights.

The second section examines how we can encourage other people to think again. You’ll learn how an international debate champion wins arguments and an African-American musician persuades people to abandon discrimination (歧视). You’ll discover how a special kind of listening helped an officer convince the opposing side to join in peace talks. And if you’re a Yankees fan, I’m going to see if I can convince you to root for the Red Sox.

The third section is about how we can create communities of lifelong learners. In social life, a lab that specializes in difficult conversations will cast light on how we can communicate better about debated issues like climate change. In schools, you’ll find out how educators teach kids to think again by treating classrooms like museums, and approaching projects like rewriting time-honored textbooks. I close by examining the importance of reconsidering our best-laid plans.

This book is an invitation to let go of knowledge and opinions that are no longer serving you well, and to establish 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 man may usually be known by the books he reads as well as by the company he keeps. 【小题1】

【小题2】It is the same today that it always was, and it will never change. It is the most patient and cheerful of companions.

There is an old proverb, “Love me, love my dog.” 【小题3】The book is a truer and higher bond of union. Men can think, feel through their favorite author.

【小题4】They bring us into the presence of the greatest minds that have ever lived. We hear what they said and did. 【小题5】 We feel as if we were in a measure actors with them in the scenes which they describe.

The book is a living voice. It is an intellect to which on still listens.

I always wanted to be extraordinarily good at something. Not just as in, “Great job, Jimbo!” No, I wanted to be best-in-class, awe-inspiring, tiptop: a world-famous genius, like Michael Phelps, or Mark Zuckerberg.

Unfortunately, my version of reality did not quite line up with this delusional vision. I was a good swimmer, but I peaked at the collegiate State Championships level. My academic record was pretty solid, but I never would have made it into one of those ivy-league schools.

Though I rose to above-average status in a couple of areas, the disappointing truth was that I would never amount to anything more than a mid-sized fish in a small pond. God apparently had other plans.

What drove me crazy, though, was the superstar talent thrown in my face at every turn. Some folks just seemed to get an unfair intensive dose (剂量) of it. Why couldn’t I be like Bernie Williams, the famed New York Yankees player who also happens to be a world-class jazz guitar virtuoso (艺术大师)?

Some say greatness is simply a function of putting in the practice time. Around ten thousand hours, to be precise, according to author Malcolm Gladwell. I don’t question the theory of devoting extraordinary efforts to developing one’s expertise, but it seems that raw talent is equally important. You either have it or you don’t.

I’ve heard that as people approach middle age, their life satisfaction increases because they begin to accept the gap between the expectations for themselves and the reality. After a few decades of frustration without the desired results, we eventually come to terms with how our lives turned out, even if it falls far short of our idealized youthful expectations.

Hope bends, it seems.