Shortform Books

B. Anderson: The Origins of National Consciousness

How did nationalism develop? What was it like to live in the pre-nationalist age? Political scientist and historian Benedict Anderson says that the ideology of “nationalism” is a fairly recent social construct. Before nationalism, people would identify themselves with their occupation, or village, and political communities were ruled by dynastic sovereigns rather than governments. Keep reading to learn about the origins of national consciousness, according to Benedict Anderson.

The Instinctive Reaction Tendency—Explained

The 25 Cognitive Biases: Instinctive Reaction Tendency

What is the instinctive reaction tendency? How do you keep calm in stressful situations? The instinctive reaction tendency is the inclination to react without thinking during stressful situations leading to ill-informed decision making. You can control the tendency by keeping calm during stressful situations and recognizing that you still have some time to think methodically before making a decision. Read on to learn more about the instinctive reaction tendency.

Loss Aversion Bias: Explained With Examples

The 25 Cognitive Biases: Loss Aversion Bias

What is loss aversion bias? How do you avoid triggering the tendency? The loss aversion bias is the tendency to prefer avoiding losses to acquiring new gains. This bias is triggered by the pain of losing something valuable in the past. You can manage the tendency by calibrating all your losses in true absolute terms, rather than relative terms. Read on to learn more about the loss aversion bias.

John Kotter: Sustain Acceleration to Cement Change

What does Kotter mean by “sustain acceleration”? Why don’t changes tend to sustain themselves? Step 7 of John Kotter’s 8-step change model is to sustain acceleration. Kotter says that you must continue to build upon your changes, otherwise, employees will fall into their old ways of doing things. In his book Leading Change, Kotter provides some actionables and tips on how to do this. Continue below for an explanation of step 7 of the change model.

The Upholder, Obliger, Questioner, & Rebel: Explained

What are the four tendencies from Gretchen Ruben’s book? What are the personality traits, strengths, and weaknesses associated with each tendency? The four tendencies are the Upholder, Obliger, Questioner, and Rebel. Knowing what type of tendency you are can help you find a better job fit, discover your strengths, and understand those around you better. Here is an overview of each of the four tendencies.

Intermediate Goals: Milestones of Success

Do you set intermediate goals as benchmarks toward your major goals? What difference can they make? In Scaling Up, Verne Harnish argues that setting and reaching intermediate goals contributes to team buy-in and the ultimate achievement of your vision. They also give you a chance to learn what’s working and what isn’t. Read more to learn about intermediate goals.

Drama-Free Discipline: It’s Not the Same as Punishment

What is the difference between traditional forms of discipline and drama-free discipline? Is punishing your child the same as disciplining them? In their book No-Drama Discipline, Siegel and Bryson believe that many parents misunderstand discipline to mean punishment. However, discipline should be about strengthening their growing brains and forming bonds. Here is the difference between punishment and drama-free discipline.

How to Reframe Your Thoughts for More Positivity

How to Develop a Positive Sales Attitude

Do you often find yourself stuck in negative thinking patterns? What can you do to train your mind to think more positively? According to Joseph Murphy, the author of The Power of Your Subconscious Mind, negative, self-sabotaging thoughts can block the flow of Universal Consciousness into your life. When this flow is blocked, you are more likely to attract negative experiences into your life. In this article, we’ll explore specific methods you can use to reframe your thoughts for more positivity.

Mitigating Political Polarization in America

What are the dangers of political polarization? What might some solutions be to mitigate political polarization in America? According to Levitsky and Ziblatt, the authors of How Democracies Die, party polarization tends to lead to the erosion of democratic norms and the destruction of democracy. They define polarization as the disappearance of the middle ground in politics, in which parties do not differ merely on basic ideology or matters of public policy—but, instead, are sorted into mutually incompatible worldviews. In this article, we’ll discuss Levitsky and Ziblatt’s solution to the extreme partisan divide.

The Availability Bias: Prioritizing New Information

What is the availability bias? How do you curb the availability heuristic bias? The availability bias is the tendency to over-inflate the value of information that is recently available and ignore other important data that would have helped in making a better decision. You can curb this tendency by always using a methodical decision-making process. Read on to learn more about the availability bias.