Book Study: Think Again by Adam Grant

I have always kept an eye out for whatever Adam Grant has to say or the knowledge he has to share, simply because he is a science professor and because of our shared love for science. As a graduate from one of the disciplines of science, I found it interesting when Adam Grant said in his book, and I quote

“Intelligence is not just the ability to think; it’s the ability to rethink.”

Is he saying that intelligence is not only about thinking, but it is also about rethinking? So the thought I had previously about something, I have to think about it again and again. Is that not equivalent to second-guessing oneself? This got me interested in what Adam Grant had to say about this in his book Think Again. Honestly, what was I expecting from a book that said think again? Come on, I should have expected something like that. Nevertheless, it did not change the fact that I wanted to know what the book's knowledge had to say about the quote highlighted above.

The author spoke about the fact that some of us were trained to think intelligence is about possession. More like something we own, and what do we do with things we own, especially when they are precious to us? We protect them. More like children who have a new toy or item and they refuse to share, because they are protecting it from others. Well, this is what Adam Grant describes as intelligence, at least most of it expect the children and toy part. That is my simple way of interpreting it.

But this is not what intelligence is about. It is not about safeguarding an opinion with all you have; it is about updating what you all have. Your ability to rethink certain things and your willingness to accept when you do not know for sure. The true form of intelligence is how you update what you already know with what you did not know, and understanding when you actually do not know anything. Grant also shared in his book that what we know can turn us into preachers who preach the gospel about the knowledge they have, politicians who look for the approval of others, and then we become prosecutors when someone tries to attack what we know.

This becomes clear to me why people can get offended when something they know can be disproved. It is more to them like their intelligence being insulted, but the thing that has been disproved is something they have held close to them for a very long time. Nobody knows it all, but it is about being willing to learn when you do not know something and staying true to the knowledge you have already gained by updating it.

Then one of the things that stuck with me from the book, Adam Grant said we barely act like scientists when it comes to the knowledge or intelligence we think we already have. And what do scientists do? They run tests and ask a lot of questions about what they already know. With the change in time, it is only a matter of time before what you thought you were an authority in no longer becomes relevant or wrong. A whole lot of these have happened in the past, and we need to start rethinking what we think we know for a better understanding and knowledge updating.

_{I am @samostically, a chess player and writer. I love to share the experience I have gained from different battles over the 64 squares and the knowledgeable insights from books I have read. But most importantly, I am a Midnight Owl and I founded the community Midnight Letters.}