Background

• Authors: Edward B. Burger & Michael Starbird

• Amazon Link

• Notes by: Alex Zichettello

Prologue

• The root of success to everything is thinking

• The fundamentals of thinking for success are also the same regardless of the field

• This book is about the those fundamentals of thinking more effectively

Introduction: Elements of Effective Thinking, Learning and Creating

• Elements of effective thinking, learning and creating

  • Understand deeply

  • Let go of preconceived notions and biases

  • Make mistakes

  • Raise questions

  • Follow the flow of ideas

• Earth, fire, wind, water, change

• We are all able to live our lives more successfully than most people do

• Lifelong learners

1: Earth

• Successful people continuously develop the core purpose of their life

• Master the basics in order to become comfortable with the complex

  • As you move to things more complex the fundamentals become more nuanced

• If you can't solve a problem look for an easier problem that you can't solve

• Clear the clutter and focus on essentials

• Consciously acknowledge what you actually see

• Ask “how do I know?”

• Try alternating opinions, even to those you feel are wrong

• Use adjectives to see the invisible

  • ex: world war 1

2: Fire

• Microsoft founders had a first failed startup analyzing traffic data

• Move forward sooner than later

• If you don't know how to succeed then start by failing

• 9 failure mindset

• Can try to get it right or purposely get it wrong

• Make an attempt, find a flaw, fix it, repeat

  • Defects are not identifiable until they exist

  • Particularly important for writing

• Find the right question to the wrong answer

• Have a bad day and reflect upon it

• Explore extremes and exaggerate

3: Air

• Be like Socrates

• Questions are a profound step towards understanding

• Ask “what if?”

• Don't pretend to know things that you think you should know

• Don't be intimidated...you are the best authority on what you don't understand

• Ask questions from alternative perspectives

• Apply ideas from one subject to another to ask new questions

• The best way to learn is to teach

• Why students have math phobia

• Before doing anything stop to identify the real question

• Ask meta questions such as what is the goal of this task

• The goal of education should be to develop critical thinking skills

4: Water

• See the flow of ideas by looking back and forward

• Successful innovators harness the power of a flow of ideas

• Great solutions come from an evolutionary process, often with thousands of contributors

• Just do it then iterate

• Newton himself said his success and realizations were from standing on the shoulders of giants

• All creative geniuses start as non geniuses and take baby steps from there

• Ask yourself what previous ideas extend into the new idea at hand

• Guessing what's next anchors what's there

• Look back and reflect on previously gained knowledge and insights

• New ideas should be viewed as a beginning

• All ideas have extensions, you just have to find them

• Modern day kids have the advantage of seeing the way the world is right now without any biases from the past (&I)

• Ask what's next and follow the if this then that path

• Think 1 step back to imagine 1 step forward

• Realize that we are all prejudicial

• The best state is a state of working progress

5: Change

• Develop the habit of constructive change

• If you embrace the ability to change then you are free from worry about any defects you may have (&K)

• Work with your eyes open

• Alter what you do rather than how you do it

• Vast potential exists in us all

• Being imaginative is a skill that can be developed

• Allow old ideas to crumble in the face of new challenges

• Doubt yourself..it's a sign of strength (&K,&I)

• Becoming the quintessential you

• Making these strategies habits is key to success (&I,&K)

• How to be a quintessential person of the world