Clear Thinking: Turning Ordinary Moments into Extraordinary Results

by Shane Parrish

Some people are like corks bobbing around in the waves of an emotional sea. Their actions are in thrall to their emotions: anger, joy, sadness, fear—whatever gets triggered in the moment.

While the ego tries to prevent you from acknowledging any deficiencies you may have, self-confidence gives you the strength to acknowledge those deficiencies. This is how you learn humility. Confidence without humility is generally the same thing as overconfidence—a weakness, not a strength. Confident people have the strength to admit weaknesses and vulnerabilities, to acknowledge that other people might be better at something than they are, and to ask when they need help.

I was taking a stroll one day with the CEO of a large public company, when we started discussing how he hired people for key roles. I asked, “If you could pick one trait that would predict how someone would turn out, what would it be?” “That’s easy,” he said. “How willing they are to change their mind about what they think they know.”

“I have gathered a garland of other men’s flowers, and nothing is mine but the cord that binds them.”[5]

“What do you know about this problem that other people in the room don’t know?”