TOW #24: IRB- "Think Like a Freak," by Steven D. Levitt and Stephen J. Dubner

In Think Like a Freak, Steven D. Levitt and Stephen J. Dubner give many key points important to be successful in life by discussing how to rework the way people think. They believe that the best way of thinking is both rational and creative, and that the most successful people think this way. By using expert testimony and deductive reasoning, these authors are able to push their readers to truly “think like a freak.”

Throughout the book, Levitt and Dubner use expert testimony in order to give concrete evidence to why their claims are correct. When talking about how people who fail usually are too confident in their future, they quote Niels Bohr, a scientist who became successful in his field with his contributions to understanding atomic structure and quantum theory, who said, “Prediction...is very difficult, especially if it’s about the future.” This supports their point that we cannot be completely certain in where we turn out as it might blind us from the present problems at hand. Levitt and Dubner are trying to push readers from being so infatuated with having a successful future and to be more involved in solving present problems. By using testimony from various relevant professionals, they are able to convince their readers better, further building up their ethos.

Levitt and Dubner also use deductive reasoning to explain what people are generally compelled to do and then to tell their readers to not conform to this status quo. For example, when talking about the importance for metacognition, they say, “The barrier to thinking like a Freak is that most people are too busy to rethink the way they think– or even spend thinking at all.” Levitt and Dubner start off by giving the major premise that most people are lazy when it comes about analyzing the effectiveness of their thinking and establishing that this leads to failure. With this reasoning, they conclude that in order to be successful, people need to be more analytical about how they think and to change how they think if needed. By using deductive reason, the authors are able to logically argue their points and tell people not to conform to what the majority does.

Overall, by using expert testimony and deductive reasoning, Levitt and Dubner are able to successfully argue that rational and creative thinking is the best way of thinking. 

(http://thinkingorganized.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/08/gear-head-blue.png)