Let me precede my discussion of The Power of Intuition by explaining my understanding of the nature of "intuition." An "intuition" is just a thought, produced by the automatic (subconscious) integration of present observations with past experiences. Qua "intuition,"...
We are bombarded with factoids and sound bites in political speeches, subway ads, water-cooler conversations—everywhere. It takes a sharp focus to separate the babble from the facts. For guidance with this important task, I recommend Darrell Huff's classic book, How...
In this article I am continuing my campaign to end the battle between reason and emotion. I'd like to address another facet of that battle: the problem of bizarre, intense emotions. First a story, then the explanation. Some years ago, I held a small monthly discussion...
A Thinking Labber wrote: "Contrary to your advice to have one emotionally-challenging initiative, I have 4-5 major challenging initiatives at work and 3-4 in my personal life, none of which I feel I can realistically defer without significant consequences." This is an...
I often recommend that when you are confused in your thinking on some issue, you need to take multiple passes, first to gather information, then to test your thinking. The simplest test is to ask about each sentence, "is that literally true?" By asking this question,...
As part of the work I do to help people master the use of their own minds to achieve important goals, I occasionally find myself in the role of a "debunker." Many people don't understand how the subconscious works and they treat its influence on their lives as a kind...
Do not make any New Year's Resolutions this year. At least, not unless you're mentally ready for the commitment. How can you tell? Here are three tests: Test 1: Is your goal concrete and specific? A goal to do "more" with friends is vague. It would be better to plan...
Most advice on time management needs qualification. This caveat applies to the oft-heard advice to decide how long you will take for a task and then just do it in that time. This idea sounds appealing. Consider how much easier your life would be if you could simply...
I aim to teach people to think clearly and logically about value-laden issues. As a means to this end, I exhort my Thinking Labbers to identify "deep rational values" [Footnote 1] at stake in every confusing situation. This is critical to your short- and long-term...
Exercise: Recalibrating Emotions Background Emotions are an important source of feedback. They are our automatic life-reporting systems. We experience joy in our successes, and eagerness to achieve the next goal, which motivates us to work hard on the task at hand. Or...
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