Page 55 - SilverLakes_Issue 6_2022

BOOK REVIEWS

FOUR BOOKS TO GET YOU

THINKING DIFFERENTLY

By Michelle L Raymond

aining a new perspective is a While it takes effort to challenge
refreshing experience, especially your current ways of thinking, it can
Gwhen it brings the realisation bring about a sense of freedom because
that your thoughts are outdated and you’re on a quest for fresh, inclusive
ineffective. ways of living. 3. The invisible Gorilla by Christopher Chabris
Holding on to old ways of thinking But where to start? Here are four
can be tedious. Often you only realise books to help you on your way. All you and Daniel Simons
The authors, both experimental psychologists, wrote
this in hindsight, when you can compare need is the time to process the teachings the book in 2010. The title refers to a fascinating
what you used to believe as right, true in these books and the desire to learn,
and inevitable with what is now possible. unlearn and relearn in order to create a research project they undertook which showed that
people who are focused on one thing can easily
It’s like getting a new lease on life. better world for yourself.
overlook something else.
They go on to describe the most common tricks
1. The Fifth Discipline by Peter Senge that our brains and intuition can play on us and how
There are usually two reactions to this book: reverence and this shapes our sense of reality. They pose some
exasperation. People who love it use it as a handbook for interesting questions, for example: How does one
their business and leadership endeavours, and it’s a well- get at the truth in a courtroom if two people hold
known book recommendation in the MBA syllabus. opposing views on the same observed incident?
First released in 1990, the book went against standard As Time magazine wrote in its review: “This
“industrial age” thinking, with author Peter Senge proposing book makes us smarter by reminding us just how
that the current command-and-control hierarchical little we know.”
management structures in business and schools be changed
in favour of continuous learning and new and expansive ways
of thinking. His ideas are still debated today.
Senge is a scientist, a lecturer at the MIT Sloan
School of Management and the founder of the Society
for Organizational Learning. His book will challenge your
conventional ways of thinking about workplaces and leadership.

2. Deviate: The Science of Seeing Differently by
Beau Lotto
A high school teacher once said that science and art do
not belong together. This was his justification for why
a student could not combine the two when selecting
subjects for high school.
Enter the laboratory of misfits. A genius experiment
started by the author, neuroscientist and entrepreneur 4. Tuesdays with Morrie by Mitch Albom
Beau Lotto, brought together adult and child artists, This is not a typical business book; it’s a memoir
dancers, mathematicians, investors and scientists to filled with everyday wisdom and it challenges us to
collaborate, innovate and develop ideas and prototypes. examine our lives.
Startling truths emerged about the brain and its Mitch Albom is a busy, egotistical man who
perceptions. happens to come across his former college
Lotto showed that the next innovation was not a new professor, Morrie, now an old man in the last
technology; it was a new way of seeing. So, in this book he writes about how we perceive months of his life. He ends up visiting Morrie every
the world and how disrupting it leads us to create and innovate. Tuesday, just as they used to do back in college.
The author will give you a better understanding of how the brain functions by He chronicles the enlightening conversations they
encouraging you to ask questions and deviate from accepted patterns of thought. have about life, death, love and success. Their
rekindled relationship turns into one final “class”:
lessons in how to live.
I believe that learning is a collaborative and community effort, so I invite you to send an First published in 2000, this book remains a
email telling me which books have changed the way you think. bestseller and serves as a reminder to readers to see
In conclusion, I encourage you all to make learning a lifetime pursuit. beyond our daily grind. It offers us all an opportunity
michelleraymondsa@gmail.com • www.michelleraymond.com to reconsider what is really important in life.

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