Brian Johnson explains doublethink: holding two contradictory thoughts and switching between rational analysis and confident irrationality depending on what you need. A golfer thinks through mechanics before the shot, then trusts instinct during it. Nassim Taleb's barbell strategy works the same way.
Foreign. Hi, this is Brian. Welcome back to another micro class.
This one's on Doublethink. It's inspired by Bounce by Matthew Syed. Awesome book. Doublethink is an idea inspired by George Orwell's 1984, in which he suggested that that we have the ability to hold in our little brains two contradictory thoughts simultaneously and accept them both as true. So imagine you believe this and you believe the opposite simultaneously, and you're able to pull out whichever one is relevant. If this one helps you, you pull that one out and then you bury the other one. If this one helps you, you pull it out and you bury the other one. Double thing. Simultaneously holding contradictory thoughts, burying the one that isn't useful for you in the moment, and using the one that is and being able to switch it at will. It's a really powerful idea. Matthew Syed tells us the best performers are able to do this. He uses the example of a golfer.
Imagine our guy lining up and he's.
Gonna make a shot right now. What does he do? First, he employs a very rational approach. He looks at his strengths and weaknesses, the risk of failure at different shots. He analyzes it very closely and carefully. Then once he's made his decision, he gets rid of that and he brings this to the surface, which is an irrational, optimistic, uber confidence. Done. I am going to hit this shot perfectly. Boom. Never any doubt. Doubt in this phase. None here. Double think. It's similar to Nassim Taleb's antifragile idea where he tells us barbell strategy. We need to be simultaneously conservative and simultaneously super aggressive. Super conservative, super aggressive. Double think.
Be whichever is appropriate for that moment.
And hold both there, ready to tap into whatever is going to be optimal.
In the given situation.
Think about that. Do you lean one or the other? It's a difficult skill to master, but let's double think.
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