Elastic: Flexible Thinking in a Time of Change

Monthly Book Review

The world is changing faster than it has ever changed before. Just a year ago, we didn’t have the AI large language models that we have today, and now we have access to more advanced generative AI than many of us could have imagined we’d see so quickly.

How do we keep up? How do ensure that we are flexible enough to embrace change? Or better yet, how do we stay ahead of change and generate the new ideas that will drive the future?

Those questions are part of the exploration of the book Elastic: Flexible Thinking in a Time of Change by Leonard Mlodinow.

In the book, Mlodinow examines the concept of elastic thinking, a cognitive approach characterized by the capacity to let go of comfortable ideas and become open to new ways of thinking. He defines elastic thinking as:

“the capacity to let go of comfortable ideas and become accustomed to ambiguity and contradiction; the capability to rise above conventional mind-sets and to reframe the questions we ask; the ability to abandon our ingrained assumptions and open ourselves to new paradigms; the propensity to rely on imagination as much as on logic and to generate and integrate a wide variety of ideas; and the willingness to experiment and be tolerant of failure.”

Elastic thinking differs from the two other types of thinking the book identifies, namely logical thinking and analytical thinking. Traditional logical and analytical thinking, while still important, are no longer sufficient to tackle the complex and unforeseen challenges of the modern world.

The book uses a blend of neuroscience, psychology, and personal anecdotes to explain how the brain engages in elastic thinking and how this mode of thought can be nurtured and developed.

So let’s explores this some more.

Key Takeaways

Elasticity is about Connections

The division of thinking in the book is a helpful.

• Logical Thinking - This type of thinking can be scripted or programmed and is useful for everyone. There are certain tasks that we don’t need to overthink, so having logic or programmatic steps to follow frees up mental capacity, especially in humans, for other thinking.

• Analytical Thinking - This type of thinking is often praised because we might assess a situation, weigh the possibilities, and decide. This is the type of thinking that computers are very good at because they can go through all the variables much faster than humans can.

• Elastic Thinking - This type of thinking is where humans can excel. It is about building connections and forming new ideas. This is where we should focus, because it allows us to meet the novelty and change that is happening in the world.

Make Space for Default Brain

So how can we be better elastic thinkers?