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A review by fatherroderick
Think Again: The Power of Knowing What You Don't Know by Adam M. Grant
5.0
I loved this book. It challenges you to rethink your attitude towards people and opinions you don’t agree with.
Instead of creating your own bubble, you have much to gain from examining points of view that challenge your own convictions. The book invites you to see your own opinion as a hypothesis that can be confirmed or altered based on more information, including that of people outside of your own bubble.
It also advocates a humble, self-relativizing attitude in communication and teaching instead of top-down communication and preaching.
There is a lot to learn here for religious people as well. Pope Francis has initiated what he calls a ‘synodal process’ during which he hopes the church will improve its listening skills, to be more open to other opinions, to enter true dialogue. As a priest, I’ve had my own experiences with the suffocating effect of rigidity and closed-mindedness on church life and on the relationship between church and society.
If you believe in the guidance of the Holy Spirit and the common quest for truth, you have nothing to fear from divergent opinions or from a culture that may not share the values you believe in. Instead of closing the doors and windows to shield you from encounter and dialogue, the situation of the church in our western world should form an incentive to talk with those that think differently; and the best dialogue is the one where you don’t talk about your opinions, but about your values.
Instead of creating your own bubble, you have much to gain from examining points of view that challenge your own convictions. The book invites you to see your own opinion as a hypothesis that can be confirmed or altered based on more information, including that of people outside of your own bubble.
It also advocates a humble, self-relativizing attitude in communication and teaching instead of top-down communication and preaching.
There is a lot to learn here for religious people as well. Pope Francis has initiated what he calls a ‘synodal process’ during which he hopes the church will improve its listening skills, to be more open to other opinions, to enter true dialogue. As a priest, I’ve had my own experiences with the suffocating effect of rigidity and closed-mindedness on church life and on the relationship between church and society.
If you believe in the guidance of the Holy Spirit and the common quest for truth, you have nothing to fear from divergent opinions or from a culture that may not share the values you believe in. Instead of closing the doors and windows to shield you from encounter and dialogue, the situation of the church in our western world should form an incentive to talk with those that think differently; and the best dialogue is the one where you don’t talk about your opinions, but about your values.