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Hare Brain, Tortoise Mind: How Intelligence Increases When You Think Less
In these accelerated times, our decisive and businesslike ways of thinking are unprepared for ambiguity, paradox, and sleeping on it." We assume that the quick-thinking "hare brain" will beat out the slower Intuition of the "tortoise mind." However, now research in cognitive science is changing this understanding of the human mind. It suggests that patience and confusion--rather than rigor and certainty--are the essential precursors of wisdom. With a compelling argument that the mind works best when we trust our unconscious, or "undermind," psychologist Guy Claxton makes an appeal that we be less analytical and let our creativity have free rein. He also encourages reevaluation of society's obsession with results-oriented thinking and problem-solving under pressure. Packed with Interesting anecdotes, a dozen puzzles to test your reasoning, and the latest related research, Hare Brain, Tortoise Mind is an Illuminating, uplifting, stimulating read that focuses on a new kind of well-being and cognition.
272 pages, Paperback
First published May 15, 1997
196 people are currently reading
1519 people want to read
About the author
Guy Claxton
70 books42 followersGuy Claxton is Emeritus Professor of the Learning Sciences at the University of Winchester. His many publications include Hare Brain, Tortoise Mind: Why Intelligence Increases When You Think Less. He lives in the UK.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 39 reviews
March 26, 2010
This book is alright. A good concept. But save yourself several hours by reading this sage bit of wisdom: Sometimes you can't solve problems by pounding them out with a mental hammer. Sometimes they just come to you after a long bout of waiting and lazily thinking it over.
There, you just saved yourself the trouble of reading a whole book. That basically sums it up.
There, you just saved yourself the trouble of reading a whole book. That basically sums it up.
October 1, 2017
I finished reading this book with an armful of “aha’s!” and one question: Why hasn’t this book been the number one bestseller since its publication in May of 2016? It is beyond transformative and that it is not commonly acknowledged to be is the best evidence I can offer as to why it should be.
Mr. Claxton is a cognitive scientist, in his own words, but apparently has a strong professional background in the psychology of learning, and at least a passing interest in Eastern philosophy.
The premise of this book is both brilliant and fairly straightforward, although it is always presumptuous of a reader to stake that claim. Claxton makes a convincing scientific case that the “scientific” perspective—what he calls the “d-mode” (deliberate)—has come to totally dominate our social, commercial, and educational institutions. And while he does not reject this development out of hand, he does make a strong case that the perspective is incomplete and has caused us to overlook the essential humanity and importance of the unconscious—what he calls the “undermind,” the place where intuition, contemplation, and instinct reside.
The undermind is not the Freudian subconscious, but is the vast area of thought that is not consciously recognized or understood. This is the tortoise part of thought where slow thinking—slow knowing as he refers to it—is the most effective, and often the only, path to truth. Speed, in these cases—or hareful thinking (my own phrase)—is not just ineffective, but counter-productive. If it is truth that we’re after, the hare, in these cases, is a red herring.
Claxton proffers that conscious rational thought and underminded thinking are ideally suited to different problems. As in the case of the Chinese notion of yin and yang, they are complementary, not opposing, modes of thought. One, in fact, cannot exist without the other. (To be fair to the author, he does explicitly make that comparison.)
There are many ramifications of the one-dimensional pre-occupation we see today. In the world of business, companies have essentially sterilized themselves, finding themselves incapable of timely innovation in fast-paced markets that demand it. For the same reason, moreover, they have destroyed any sense of engagement and belonging in the workplace, stifling both creativity and productivity in the process.
My own gestalt in this area while reading this book was that this pre-occupation with conscious reason—big data, statistical analysis, talent management, and financial modeling—is the reason why the work/life question is in the forefront of so many corporate minds, particularly among the young. If we accept the value of tortoise-knowing, the question literally evaporates. We can even work, as I did some four decades ago, in our sleep, without the stress felt today due to our blind focus on deductive reason and the false confidence we place in fast decisions.
Claxton is even more concerned, and on point, when it comes to education. We are not preparing our children for a life of learning. We are preparing them to perform on standardized testing, or convincing them that their “abilities” are fixed and cannot be improved upon. Both are unproductive and ultimately inhumane outcomes. We are setting our children up (I have two daughters in high school.) both for failure and for a life of angst and anxiety as they struggle to remain connected in a meaningful way to the world around them.
While he doesn’t address these issues directly, I do believe that Claxton has also uncovered a significant root cause of the political division, and the struggle around class, race, gender, and sexual identity that is tearing the very fabric of Western society apart today.
The reason is outside the peripheral vision of the hare, but within the sweeping visual arc of the attentive but subconscious tortoise. When we see conscious rationality as both exclusive and all-inclusive, as the hare does, it is a short hop from “I am right,” to, “You are wrong.” There can, as a result, be no diversity at any level.
So who would this book benefit? If you ask the hare you will get a short list in return. If you ask the tortoise, however, you will see the value of this book to business people, political leaders, educators, parents, and adolescents. I can’t think of anyone, in fact, who would not benefit from this book.
I do not know Mr. Claxton and never heard of him or this book before stumbling across it in the Kindle deal section. I am a voracious reader and was running out of money to satiate my appetite now that $15 is not an uncommon price for a Kindle book. This book was a steal by comparison but is one of the most powerful and thought-provoking books I’ve read this year.
Mr. Claxton is a cognitive scientist, in his own words, but apparently has a strong professional background in the psychology of learning, and at least a passing interest in Eastern philosophy.
The premise of this book is both brilliant and fairly straightforward, although it is always presumptuous of a reader to stake that claim. Claxton makes a convincing scientific case that the “scientific” perspective—what he calls the “d-mode” (deliberate)—has come to totally dominate our social, commercial, and educational institutions. And while he does not reject this development out of hand, he does make a strong case that the perspective is incomplete and has caused us to overlook the essential humanity and importance of the unconscious—what he calls the “undermind,” the place where intuition, contemplation, and instinct reside.
The undermind is not the Freudian subconscious, but is the vast area of thought that is not consciously recognized or understood. This is the tortoise part of thought where slow thinking—slow knowing as he refers to it—is the most effective, and often the only, path to truth. Speed, in these cases—or hareful thinking (my own phrase)—is not just ineffective, but counter-productive. If it is truth that we’re after, the hare, in these cases, is a red herring.
Claxton proffers that conscious rational thought and underminded thinking are ideally suited to different problems. As in the case of the Chinese notion of yin and yang, they are complementary, not opposing, modes of thought. One, in fact, cannot exist without the other. (To be fair to the author, he does explicitly make that comparison.)
There are many ramifications of the one-dimensional pre-occupation we see today. In the world of business, companies have essentially sterilized themselves, finding themselves incapable of timely innovation in fast-paced markets that demand it. For the same reason, moreover, they have destroyed any sense of engagement and belonging in the workplace, stifling both creativity and productivity in the process.
My own gestalt in this area while reading this book was that this pre-occupation with conscious reason—big data, statistical analysis, talent management, and financial modeling—is the reason why the work/life question is in the forefront of so many corporate minds, particularly among the young. If we accept the value of tortoise-knowing, the question literally evaporates. We can even work, as I did some four decades ago, in our sleep, without the stress felt today due to our blind focus on deductive reason and the false confidence we place in fast decisions.
Claxton is even more concerned, and on point, when it comes to education. We are not preparing our children for a life of learning. We are preparing them to perform on standardized testing, or convincing them that their “abilities” are fixed and cannot be improved upon. Both are unproductive and ultimately inhumane outcomes. We are setting our children up (I have two daughters in high school.) both for failure and for a life of angst and anxiety as they struggle to remain connected in a meaningful way to the world around them.
While he doesn’t address these issues directly, I do believe that Claxton has also uncovered a significant root cause of the political division, and the struggle around class, race, gender, and sexual identity that is tearing the very fabric of Western society apart today.
The reason is outside the peripheral vision of the hare, but within the sweeping visual arc of the attentive but subconscious tortoise. When we see conscious rationality as both exclusive and all-inclusive, as the hare does, it is a short hop from “I am right,” to, “You are wrong.” There can, as a result, be no diversity at any level.
So who would this book benefit? If you ask the hare you will get a short list in return. If you ask the tortoise, however, you will see the value of this book to business people, political leaders, educators, parents, and adolescents. I can’t think of anyone, in fact, who would not benefit from this book.
I do not know Mr. Claxton and never heard of him or this book before stumbling across it in the Kindle deal section. I am a voracious reader and was running out of money to satiate my appetite now that $15 is not an uncommon price for a Kindle book. This book was a steal by comparison but is one of the most powerful and thought-provoking books I’ve read this year.
July 5, 2020
This book is about the 'Undermind' as Guy Claxton refers to it, aka the Unconscious mind; the Id.
It's about the ability to ponder on a question. From the unconscious comes creative answers to problems and the 'introverted intuitive' is the person who is most in tune with their unconscious experience, trusting it, exploring, facing what is unknown; to be comfortable with ambiguity and uncertainty is to observe the unconscious and know that information is equivocal. Buddhist monks aim for the state of 'I do not know' or 'I know nothing'. Also the intelligent unconscious is what observes good art, the beauty of a song or feeling a poem gives. The feeling it inspires is the true essence of what is there, not what you can analyse simply from reason.
An interesting book. One that gives learning through intuition and slow discovery as much importance as conscious, analytical ways of thinking.
It's about the ability to ponder on a question. From the unconscious comes creative answers to problems and the 'introverted intuitive' is the person who is most in tune with their unconscious experience, trusting it, exploring, facing what is unknown; to be comfortable with ambiguity and uncertainty is to observe the unconscious and know that information is equivocal. Buddhist monks aim for the state of 'I do not know' or 'I know nothing'. Also the intelligent unconscious is what observes good art, the beauty of a song or feeling a poem gives. The feeling it inspires is the true essence of what is there, not what you can analyse simply from reason.
An interesting book. One that gives learning through intuition and slow discovery as much importance as conscious, analytical ways of thinking.
November 9, 2015
Guy makes some extremely important points in this book when he defines intelligence as related to learning and creativity. Coining terms like 'undermind' rather than subconscious as well as 'd-mode' thinking he demonstrates through an array of studies coupled with a Zen essence how 'rushing' answers often works against us. In fact often the 'best' answer is one that's yet to come, aka Tortoise Mind.
In particular I love that he addresses the legacy educational systems and how standardizing human intelligence will never serve the greater good. Sir Ken Robinson has been stating this for years; the notion that ALL human beings learn at the same pace and level is like saying we're machines. Last time I checked I had a heart, a brain and think for myself. Thanks Guy for illuminating what the world can benefit by reading your words of wisdom which are SUPPORTED by studies as well.
In particular I love that he addresses the legacy educational systems and how standardizing human intelligence will never serve the greater good. Sir Ken Robinson has been stating this for years; the notion that ALL human beings learn at the same pace and level is like saying we're machines. Last time I checked I had a heart, a brain and think for myself. Thanks Guy for illuminating what the world can benefit by reading your words of wisdom which are SUPPORTED by studies as well.
November 18, 2018
“Unencumbered by the Thought Process”
This book has been around a while, but it has aged well, with the exception of a few sections in the final chapter in which the author considers the future. Not bad. I read it around the turn of the 21st century when it first came out. At the time, I was an academic, not a fiction writer, so I read it as psychology research. Then as now, I practiced yoga and meditation, so the observations on mindfulness and the relationship of our busy “hare brain” with our slower, nonverbal “tortoise mind” or undermind were meaningful to me both times through the book.
The second time around, however, Claxton’s examination of how the undermind works struck me as relevant to mystery fiction. In a number of well-written series, I’ve noticed how authors integrate their detectives’ intuition with their reasoning. The undermind detects subtle patterns and changes in them that the conscious, logical, reasoning mind doesn’t. When these discoveries surface and both minds meet, so to speak, it can seem like an epiphany. Scientists, inventors, psychotherapists, and other who face problems or puzzles that are complex and ambiguous go through this process.
So do writers, at least those of us who don’t plan ahead with an outline. A pantser” (one who writes flying by the seat of her pants) creates a plot without consciously knowing where it's going, often not knowing who committed the crime let alone how it will be solved, and yet the undermind seems to know, planting clues and connecting patterns. The logical mind has to follow up and cut, revise and polish, tightening the undermind’s creation, but the first draft bubbles up from below the surface.
Claxton cites studies in which research subjects performed worse under pressure and when trying to succeed, and better when they were told to play. If we’re too serious and ambitious, we may be less intelligent. Much learning takes place by simply messing around with things and ideas to see what works. Without leisure, without mental open space in which to mess around and let the undermind play, we miss access to our deeper wisdom.
Next time you have a flash of inspiration in the shower or while washing dishes, thank your undermind. I’ve solved more plot problems and had more ideas on a four-mile run than I ever have by structuring an outline. No headphones. No input. Just me and my undermind. Unencumbered, as Tom Magliozzi used to say, by the thought process.
https://www.cartalk.com/content/tom-m...
This book has been around a while, but it has aged well, with the exception of a few sections in the final chapter in which the author considers the future. Not bad. I read it around the turn of the 21st century when it first came out. At the time, I was an academic, not a fiction writer, so I read it as psychology research. Then as now, I practiced yoga and meditation, so the observations on mindfulness and the relationship of our busy “hare brain” with our slower, nonverbal “tortoise mind” or undermind were meaningful to me both times through the book.
The second time around, however, Claxton’s examination of how the undermind works struck me as relevant to mystery fiction. In a number of well-written series, I’ve noticed how authors integrate their detectives’ intuition with their reasoning. The undermind detects subtle patterns and changes in them that the conscious, logical, reasoning mind doesn’t. When these discoveries surface and both minds meet, so to speak, it can seem like an epiphany. Scientists, inventors, psychotherapists, and other who face problems or puzzles that are complex and ambiguous go through this process.
So do writers, at least those of us who don’t plan ahead with an outline. A pantser” (one who writes flying by the seat of her pants) creates a plot without consciously knowing where it's going, often not knowing who committed the crime let alone how it will be solved, and yet the undermind seems to know, planting clues and connecting patterns. The logical mind has to follow up and cut, revise and polish, tightening the undermind’s creation, but the first draft bubbles up from below the surface.
Claxton cites studies in which research subjects performed worse under pressure and when trying to succeed, and better when they were told to play. If we’re too serious and ambitious, we may be less intelligent. Much learning takes place by simply messing around with things and ideas to see what works. Without leisure, without mental open space in which to mess around and let the undermind play, we miss access to our deeper wisdom.
Next time you have a flash of inspiration in the shower or while washing dishes, thank your undermind. I’ve solved more plot problems and had more ideas on a four-mile run than I ever have by structuring an outline. No headphones. No input. Just me and my undermind. Unencumbered, as Tom Magliozzi used to say, by the thought process.
https://www.cartalk.com/content/tom-m...
February 17, 2016
I first learned of this book while reading a Fast Company article interviewing the inimitable John Cleese on Creativity (indeed, his quote 1Cthe essential guide to creative thinking 1D sits on the bottom righthand corner of the cover). Subtitled 1CHow intelligence increases when you think less, 1D this fascinating book is not an easy read. I must confess that I had some issues with the author 19s take on the evolution of thought as well as some of the applied meditation and wisdom theories, but there is still much to be gained from making it through to the end.
Providing a strong case for the use of what he calls the 1Cundermind, 1D psychologist Claxton provides study after study to demonstrate how much we can gain by going beyond what he calls 1Cd-mode thinking 1D - the analytical, one answer approach that says thinking harder is the best way to solve every problem. If you cannot, you are simply not bright enough. D-mode thinking, elevated and enhanced by the computer age, has its application, but for many more complex problems it simply will not provide the best results, if any at all. Some of its shortcomings include valuing answers more than questions, explanation over observation, reason over intuition, and is much more purposeful and effortful than playful. Fascinating chapters include Learning by Osmosis, Having an Idea, Knowing More Than We Think, Thinking Too Much, Perception Without Consciousness, Paying Attention and The Undermind Society: Putting the Tortoise to Work.
Early in his book Claxton provides this guidance on thinking fast or slow: 1CWhether to back the hare or the tortoise depends crucially on the nature of the situation. If it is complex, unfamiliar, or behaves unexpectedly, tortoise mind is the better bet. If it is a nice logical puzzle, try the hare brain first. 1D
This is a challenging book to ingest, but the patient reader can glean much about balancing reason (which does have its place) and intution (typically present in all of us at a young age, effectively drilled out of many of us by young adulthood through concentration on knowing rather than acquiring know-how). Claxton 19s concern, demonstrated in the words of the German composer Conradin Kreuter in 1955 as he described the difference between 1Ccalculative 1D and 1Cmeditative 1D thinking is that 1Ccalculative thinking may someday come to be accepted and practised as the only way of thinking.... Then man would have denied and thrown away his own special nature - that he is a meditative being. 1D
In the final chapter of this extraordinary book - The Undermind Society - the author posits the creation of work places and situations where the value of intutions and the nature of the mental modes that produce them are clearly understood by all, especially leaders who both support and practice 1Cslow learning. 1D Providing workers with some autonomy and control over their work and environment will allow them to feel 1Csafe 1D to be more innovative and intuitive.
Claxton closes with these thoughts: 1CThe voices of philosophy, poetry and imagery are relatively weak in a world that largely assumes that only science and reason speak with true authority.... The hare brain has had a good run for its money. Now it is time to give the tortoise mind its due. 1D
Providing a strong case for the use of what he calls the 1Cundermind, 1D psychologist Claxton provides study after study to demonstrate how much we can gain by going beyond what he calls 1Cd-mode thinking 1D - the analytical, one answer approach that says thinking harder is the best way to solve every problem. If you cannot, you are simply not bright enough. D-mode thinking, elevated and enhanced by the computer age, has its application, but for many more complex problems it simply will not provide the best results, if any at all. Some of its shortcomings include valuing answers more than questions, explanation over observation, reason over intuition, and is much more purposeful and effortful than playful. Fascinating chapters include Learning by Osmosis, Having an Idea, Knowing More Than We Think, Thinking Too Much, Perception Without Consciousness, Paying Attention and The Undermind Society: Putting the Tortoise to Work.
Early in his book Claxton provides this guidance on thinking fast or slow: 1CWhether to back the hare or the tortoise depends crucially on the nature of the situation. If it is complex, unfamiliar, or behaves unexpectedly, tortoise mind is the better bet. If it is a nice logical puzzle, try the hare brain first. 1D
This is a challenging book to ingest, but the patient reader can glean much about balancing reason (which does have its place) and intution (typically present in all of us at a young age, effectively drilled out of many of us by young adulthood through concentration on knowing rather than acquiring know-how). Claxton 19s concern, demonstrated in the words of the German composer Conradin Kreuter in 1955 as he described the difference between 1Ccalculative 1D and 1Cmeditative 1D thinking is that 1Ccalculative thinking may someday come to be accepted and practised as the only way of thinking.... Then man would have denied and thrown away his own special nature - that he is a meditative being. 1D
In the final chapter of this extraordinary book - The Undermind Society - the author posits the creation of work places and situations where the value of intutions and the nature of the mental modes that produce them are clearly understood by all, especially leaders who both support and practice 1Cslow learning. 1D Providing workers with some autonomy and control over their work and environment will allow them to feel 1Csafe 1D to be more innovative and intuitive.
Claxton closes with these thoughts: 1CThe voices of philosophy, poetry and imagery are relatively weak in a world that largely assumes that only science and reason speak with true authority.... The hare brain has had a good run for its money. Now it is time to give the tortoise mind its due. 1D
October 5, 2016
This is not the most engaging writing I've ever encountered, but I was really fascinated by the content.
Try Kahneman's "Thinking, Fast and Slow" for a more accessible approach to the same general topic if the wordy writing bogs you down, but this one has more info and a more rigorous approach, and I think is worth getting through.
Try Kahneman's "Thinking, Fast and Slow" for a more accessible approach to the same general topic if the wordy writing bogs you down, but this one has more info and a more rigorous approach, and I think is worth getting through.
December 7, 2010
This book is about brain science and more - Philosophy, psychology, spirituality, art, and wisdom. I receive echos of this book every time I am working on a problem.
It encourages us, as does Buddhism, to be in the present moment - and shows why that works.
It encourages us, as does Buddhism, to be in the present moment - and shows why that works.
December 7, 2024
1.5 Stars!
I came across this through a little John Cleese book, where he was positively gushing about the merits of this, so I thought I’d track it down. One of the first things you notice about this is that Claxton’s style is too dry and text too dense for the genre he’s writing in. It seems to be unsure about who its audience is, it’s not quite the scientific/academic crowd, but it’s not really for the mass market either?...
Although it seems relatively short this is actually really dense – and not in a nice way, it needs more paragraph breaks and this style feels too stuffy and stilted to engage you in any meaningful ways. All the way through this I was holding out for (a hero) the insight, the breakthrough thinking or the Eureka moment…whatever you want to call it, it never came anyway.
November 28, 2012
I read this book as part of my MA in Human Resource Management. Found the concepts interesting however I did get a little bored towards the end but it's probably a lot more easier to read than some of other literature on the subject. A good starting point for problem solving topics
August 6, 2013
Not only is this a wonderful book for stretching your linguistic muscle on, but it is also a book that encourages you to "zone out" reminds you to "chill" and advocates doing nothing to come up with good ideas. Love it.
February 8, 2017
Author Guy Claxton explains in detail how brain works. I was introduced to concept of unconscious mind and how it behaves in everyday life. This is not theory you learn in school so be prepared for something new, revolutionary. Use this book to prepare yourself for life-long learning.
June 5, 2012
Life-changing thoughts on intuition.
May 1, 2022
While still begrudgingly hold an air of unwelcomes towards any book targeted for self help, I wished somehow to try one that might shake off the rhythm or might as well confirm the bias. Hare Brain, Tortoise Mind did the latter for me but by trying things out of the mold. I long have thought that nothing would exceed my disdain towards unpractical self help books which usually roam on babbling on uncertainties, on and on, without much research being taken until I met pop science, the talkative sibling of the same help family. Topics that are vague or holistically broad usually fall victims especially in the lines of creativity and motivation, where it seems everyone has a new entry that more or less is identical to the last guy's except this time it has a new title. This maze of unforgiving repetitive façade has always derailed me from taking the genre head on and instead pushed me away from its quasi prison. In fact, this low threshold in terms of specialty was what made the genre unfulfilling. It always felt the wisdom gained is little to the effort put. and the elements learned is not raw enough that it can be utilized in a universal method. Thus the knowledge has to bind with the last page of the book and doesn't extend any further in an overreaching curriculum, and hence a sense of quasi knowledge is achieved. So, when I stumbled on a self help book written by a Ph.D. professor, one of Oxford's profs at that, my eyes were drawn, and my interest peaked... and expectations pummeled.
Guy Claxon isn't of the types that like to put things clean and tidy for the world to see. The good, the bad and totally unrelated somehow found a room to coexist in his chapters. too much for the throwing the baby with the bath water. But seriously it could've been edited better. I had to work extra hard to extract the pulp of each chapter which sadly surmounted to nothing much. At times, it felt like reading the Brain Games Tv show script minus the host and the visual stimuli. It felt like a gas-lighting of a book.
Guy Claxon isn't of the types that like to put things clean and tidy for the world to see. The good, the bad and totally unrelated somehow found a room to coexist in his chapters. too much for the throwing the baby with the bath water. But seriously it could've been edited better. I had to work extra hard to extract the pulp of each chapter which sadly surmounted to nothing much. At times, it felt like reading the Brain Games Tv show script minus the host and the visual stimuli. It felt like a gas-lighting of a book.
March 24, 2025
This has been sitting in my TBR pile for some time and I almost donated it. I’m glad I came to my senses or maybe it was finally time to read this. Which ever the case, this book was more than ‘an essential guide to creative thinking’ and more about embracing critical and deliberate thinking.
To do that we have to slow down. Instead of overly focusing or examining certain aspects, we need to broaden our persective and focus on solutions and outcomes. A skill set that creative types are more likely to develop - and paired with a purposeful scientific like method, can result in a faster way of knowing.
“As a culture we are, in consequence, very good at solving analytic and technological problems. The trouble is that we tend, increasingly, to treat all human predicaments as if they were of this type, including those for which such mental tools are inappropriate. We meet with cleverness, focus and deliberation those challenges that can only properly be handled with patience, intuition and relaxation.”
While this is an early cognitive science book, making a compelling argument to trust our “undermind”, the full content of his message deserves to be read in light of the current climate on ADHD.
I was personally surprised at how much this inadvertantly explains and celebrates the value of neurodiverent brains. Highly recommend!
To do that we have to slow down. Instead of overly focusing or examining certain aspects, we need to broaden our persective and focus on solutions and outcomes. A skill set that creative types are more likely to develop - and paired with a purposeful scientific like method, can result in a faster way of knowing.
“As a culture we are, in consequence, very good at solving analytic and technological problems. The trouble is that we tend, increasingly, to treat all human predicaments as if they were of this type, including those for which such mental tools are inappropriate. We meet with cleverness, focus and deliberation those challenges that can only properly be handled with patience, intuition and relaxation.”
While this is an early cognitive science book, making a compelling argument to trust our “undermind”, the full content of his message deserves to be read in light of the current climate on ADHD.
I was personally surprised at how much this inadvertantly explains and celebrates the value of neurodiverent brains. Highly recommend!
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
February 18, 2021
okay wow... took me months. absolutely months to read this. I started on 20th oct 2020, and ended on 18th feb 2021.
like I love this book. but my mind is not ready for all the sophisticated ideas and terminology used in this book. i’m only 14. like this was way too much but I love every single part of it.
okay the ending I kind off rush because I wanted to be finished, and the beginning I zone out from time to time: and I barely remember the part in which I zone out. but let me just say I love it.
like you really need to invest your time if you want to read this book. like really. full focus and attention. otherwise it’ll just be a jumble of words.
okay about the concept: I really enjoy it, and the fact that there’s studies as well really helps. the writing style is confusing at times but I still like it.
this book make me want to read more non fiction books. also all the ideas in here are so fascinating. like it open up a whole new perspective for me.
sorry if my ideas are messed up, my mind is still recovering from the intensity of this book.
honestly love it though. like really really love it.
like I love this book. but my mind is not ready for all the sophisticated ideas and terminology used in this book. i’m only 14. like this was way too much but I love every single part of it.
okay the ending I kind off rush because I wanted to be finished, and the beginning I zone out from time to time: and I barely remember the part in which I zone out. but let me just say I love it.
like you really need to invest your time if you want to read this book. like really. full focus and attention. otherwise it’ll just be a jumble of words.
okay about the concept: I really enjoy it, and the fact that there’s studies as well really helps. the writing style is confusing at times but I still like it.
this book make me want to read more non fiction books. also all the ideas in here are so fascinating. like it open up a whole new perspective for me.
sorry if my ideas are messed up, my mind is still recovering from the intensity of this book.
honestly love it though. like really really love it.
April 12, 2020
Lots to think about, literally!
This book is very scientifically and theoretically based, and can sometimes be a difficult read. But it really made me take a second look at how I think and how I try to get my students to think. It also makes a case for why you can't teach people how they should think it learn.
This book is very scientifically and theoretically based, and can sometimes be a difficult read. But it really made me take a second look at how I think and how I try to get my students to think. It also makes a case for why you can't teach people how they should think it learn.
June 7, 2023
I am also a writer and whenever I start to write on any topic I have many questions, that are sometimes irrelevant to the topic of the website. After reading this book I get to learn that sometimes, answering all the questions is not the right thing to do, sometimes, imperfection is the perfect way to go with it.
March 8, 2018
I really liked the idea of this book but overall thought it definitely could have been more condensed and a little clearer. If you don't have a semi strong background in psychology it may be a little much. However, it had some interesting ideas.
June 12, 2024
Very meh on this. Did t feel like I learned a ton, though it was a very comprehensive and dense collection of studies and concepts around focused thinking vs rumination thinking.
Chapter on Wisdom was quite good, most of the rest tended to feel a bit jargon-full and textbook-y.
Chapter on Wisdom was quite good, most of the rest tended to feel a bit jargon-full and textbook-y.
March 14, 2022
An oldie but still enriching. It precedes Daniel Kahneman’s fast versus slow thinking by over a decade, and would be a good one to read if you’ve already read Thinking Fast and Slow.
February 29, 2024
Muy bueno.
Aunque algunos capítulos de la primera mitad pueden resultar un poco pesados.
Aunque algunos capítulos de la primera mitad pueden resultar un poco pesados.
August 16, 2025
The lessons in this book I’ve learned over and over again. They are worth learning everytime.
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January 6, 2022I am looking to read this book. I wanted to better understand how the human mind and mindset determine success.
There is a famous book about the connection between movement and the brain: “Spark: The Revolutionary New Science of Exercise and the Brain” by John J. Ratey – Clinical Associate Professor of Psychiatry in the School of Medicine Harvard. I found out about this book when I watched the video of Dr. Kabasawa Shion - a prestigious Japanese neurologist, he said that this is the book that has had the greatest impact on his career and life in the past 20 years. this. Thanks to reading this book, he has lost more than 15kg, and put exercise into the therapy program, helping many patients with depression and other mental disorders recover or improve their situation.
Conclusion of the book:
When you exercise, you get smarter
When you move, your brain is activated
When you exercise, concentration and memory are enhanced
When you exercise, your work performance improves
The thing that excites me the most is that exercise activates the brain and this is the reason why I started exercising seriously. Every morning every morning, after doing some stretching exercises, I go out and walk around the lake near my house for about 30 minutes, combined with sunbathing. After returning home, I embark on work – usually writing, creating content, because this is the job that requires the most concentration and creativity.
After about a week of doing it, I felt a sense of mental stability and a sense of euphoria that lasted throughout the day. At this time, I recognized "Ah, it really works" and started to be more active to form and maintain the habit of going for a morning walk.
Learn more at https://tireer.com/
There is a famous book about the connection between movement and the brain: “Spark: The Revolutionary New Science of Exercise and the Brain” by John J. Ratey – Clinical Associate Professor of Psychiatry in the School of Medicine Harvard. I found out about this book when I watched the video of Dr. Kabasawa Shion - a prestigious Japanese neurologist, he said that this is the book that has had the greatest impact on his career and life in the past 20 years. this. Thanks to reading this book, he has lost more than 15kg, and put exercise into the therapy program, helping many patients with depression and other mental disorders recover or improve their situation.
Conclusion of the book:
When you exercise, you get smarter
When you move, your brain is activated
When you exercise, concentration and memory are enhanced
When you exercise, your work performance improves
The thing that excites me the most is that exercise activates the brain and this is the reason why I started exercising seriously. Every morning every morning, after doing some stretching exercises, I go out and walk around the lake near my house for about 30 minutes, combined with sunbathing. After returning home, I embark on work – usually writing, creating content, because this is the job that requires the most concentration and creativity.
After about a week of doing it, I felt a sense of mental stability and a sense of euphoria that lasted throughout the day. At this time, I recognized "Ah, it really works" and started to be more active to form and maintain the habit of going for a morning walk.
Learn more at https://tireer.com/
April 16, 2023
A parade of references, citations, and quotes. If a reader is looking for a condensed reference for thinking and consciousness, Hare Brain Tortoise Mind provides a cover to cover overview. Claxton’s inclusion of material transitions from one to the next with professorial lecture speed. I’m convinced that it is the material making his argument for his theory and not any particular revolutionary insight.
What surprised me was the irony of a heavily Hare Brain (D-mode) presentation for an argument designed to evoke Tortoise Mind behaviours. I expected a more practical approach to Tortoise Mind awareness. The arguments and validations discernibly oriented for d-mode processing. I suspect that Claxton wrote for the peer-review oriented scientific and academic communities. In that mode, it felt more like he was trying to convince me as the reader that he was right, rather than invite me on a path of self-discovery. A point he introduced in chapter 13:The Undermind Society.
Without question I concur with his premise. The application of Tortoise Mind in creative endeavours is well noted. As is the value of Hare Brain (d-mode) thinking in other applications or conditions. Keep in mind that this is a twenty-year old book with references mainly from the mid-1980s to early 1990s. These include studies, research, and mindsets that remain relevant and support current thinking on the topic.
I gave this three stars because I value the citations and quotations. For readability and new concepts, I would not have been as generous.
What surprised me was the irony of a heavily Hare Brain (D-mode) presentation for an argument designed to evoke Tortoise Mind behaviours. I expected a more practical approach to Tortoise Mind awareness. The arguments and validations discernibly oriented for d-mode processing. I suspect that Claxton wrote for the peer-review oriented scientific and academic communities. In that mode, it felt more like he was trying to convince me as the reader that he was right, rather than invite me on a path of self-discovery. A point he introduced in chapter 13:The Undermind Society.
Without question I concur with his premise. The application of Tortoise Mind in creative endeavours is well noted. As is the value of Hare Brain (d-mode) thinking in other applications or conditions. Keep in mind that this is a twenty-year old book with references mainly from the mid-1980s to early 1990s. These include studies, research, and mindsets that remain relevant and support current thinking on the topic.
I gave this three stars because I value the citations and quotations. For readability and new concepts, I would not have been as generous.
May 17, 2012
"Wisdom arises from a friendly and intimate relationship with the undermind." By the "undermind," psychologist Guy Claxton is referring to the nebulous part of our mind usually referred to as the "subconscious." In his illuminating book "Hair Brain, Tortoise Mind," Claxton expounds the benefits of allowing "slow ways of thinking" to help us find solutions to complex problems. In other words, by relaxing our minds and attending closely to the details of seemingly disparate elements, patterns will reveal themselves and wisdom will emerge.
Claxton rightly points out that Western culture's over-emphasis on analysis has inhibited the ability of our natural intuition to help us come to deeper and more meaningful states of knowing. As he puts it, "To tap into the leisurely ways of knowing, one must dare to wait." That is, we must cultivate slower means of thinking in order to allow understanding to emerge. This is something artists, musicians, creative writers, and philosophers have always known, yet Claxton explicates this basic truth in convincingly logical ways.
Claxton rightly points out that Western culture's over-emphasis on analysis has inhibited the ability of our natural intuition to help us come to deeper and more meaningful states of knowing. As he puts it, "To tap into the leisurely ways of knowing, one must dare to wait." That is, we must cultivate slower means of thinking in order to allow understanding to emerge. This is something artists, musicians, creative writers, and philosophers have always known, yet Claxton explicates this basic truth in convincingly logical ways.
June 15, 2007
Makes a strong case that we over-value a highly reasoned approach to living. It shows the pitfalls of analyzing and over-analyzing and shows, empirically, how sometimes it is just as important (maybe even more so) to "sleep on it" and to rely on that gut feeling. It also shows when which mode of thinking will be more productive.
Though Glaxton speaks of the unconscious "undermind", if you replace this with "subconscious", this book fits in well with every hypnotist's library.
Includes a huge collecton of scientific studies that illustrate the power of letting the subconscious do its work.
From the book...
Kafka, in his ‘Reflection’, says: ‘You do not need to leave your room. Remain sitting at your table and listen. Do not even listen, simply wait. Do not even wait, be quite still and solitary. The world will freely offer itself to you to be unmasked, it has no choice, it will roll in ecstasy at your feet.”
Must read - 3
Kept attention - 3
Though Glaxton speaks of the unconscious "undermind", if you replace this with "subconscious", this book fits in well with every hypnotist's library.
Includes a huge collecton of scientific studies that illustrate the power of letting the subconscious do its work.
From the book...
Kafka, in his ‘Reflection’, says: ‘You do not need to leave your room. Remain sitting at your table and listen. Do not even listen, simply wait. Do not even wait, be quite still and solitary. The world will freely offer itself to you to be unmasked, it has no choice, it will roll in ecstasy at your feet.”
Must read - 3
Kept attention - 3
June 21, 2007
If your own brain works against you, especially in the areas of creativity, and if you are fundamentally interested in brain science and cognition, this book will satisfy, and maybe even make you feel a little more whole. The pop-title and jacket description make it sound more fluffy than it actually is; true, it is written for the lay-person, but it's not a surface treatment. The author's writing style is clear and pretty penetrative. I ate this one up like candy.
July 12, 2007
Perhaps we've all experienced thinking hard about something, only for the solution to pop into our heads when we give up and have a bath. Or sleep. It is refreshing to read proper psychology done by a proper psychologist (proper = backed up with experimental investigation) in an area where so much fluff abounds. If you want to understand how to 'incubate' your creative thinking and gain confidence in your intuition, read this book. Only 226 pages!
January 16, 2017
Excellent exposition of the powers of the subconscious mind- the "undermind" as the author calls it. You realize the biases that modern society has toward engaging in conscious, analytical thinking. New idea: the conscious experience is not the driver or the one in charge, but just the result of the undermind working overtime and bringing certsin processes to the surface.
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