
Black Box Thinking
Why Most People Never Learn from Their Mistakes - But Some Do
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Narrated by:
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Simon Slater
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By:
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Matthew Syed
About this listen
Nobody wants to fail. But in highly complex organizations, success can happen only when we confront our mistakes, learn from our own version of a black box, and create a climate where it's safe to fail.
We all have to endure failure from time to time, whether it's underperforming at a job interview, flunking an exam, or losing a pickup basketball game. But for people working in safety-critical industries, getting it wrong can have deadly consequences. Consider the shocking fact that preventable medical error is the third-biggest killer in the United States, causing more than 400,000 deaths every year. More people die from mistakes made by doctors and hospitals than from traffic accidents. And most of those mistakes are never made public because of malpractice settlements with nondisclosure clauses.
For a dramatically different approach to failure, look at aviation. Every passenger aircraft in the world is equipped with an almost indestructible black box. Whenever there's any sort of mishap, major or minor, the box is opened, the data is analyzed, and experts figure out exactly what went wrong. Then the facts are published and procedures are changed, so the same mistakes won't happen again. By applying this method in recent decades, the industry has created an astonishingly good safety record.
Few of us put lives at risk in our daily work, as surgeons and pilots do, but we all have a strong interest in avoiding predictable and preventable errors. So why don't we all embrace the aviation approach to failure rather than the health-care approach? As Matthew Syed shows in this eye-opening audiobook, the answer is rooted in human psychology and organizational culture.
Syed argues that the most important determinant of success in any field is an acknowledgment of failure and a willingness to engage with it....
©2015 Matthew Syed (P)2015 Penguin AudioListeners also enjoyed...
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Critic reviews
"Mathew Syed has issued a stirring call to redefine failure. Failure shouldn’t be shameful and stigmatizing, he explains. Instead, he shows that failure can be exciting and enlightening - an essential ingredient in any recipe for success. Full of well-crafted stories and keenly deployed scientific insights, Black Box Thinking will forever change the way you think about screwing up." (Daniel Pink, author of Drive and To Sell Is Human)
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- By: Barbara Oakley PhD
- Narrated by: Barbara Oakley PhD
- Length: 9 hrs and 50 mins
- Unabridged
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Mindshift reveals how we can overcome stereotypes and preconceived ideas about what is possible for us to learn and become. At a time when we are constantly being asked to retrain and reinvent ourselves to adapt to new technologies and changing industries, this book shows us how we can uncover and develop talents we didn't realize we had - no matter what our age or background.
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Learning by anecdote
- By Mark B. on 08-11-17
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Off the Clock
- Feel Less Busy While Getting More Done
- By: Laura Vanderkam
- Narrated by: Laura Vanderkam
- Length: 6 hrs and 23 mins
- Unabridged
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In this book, Vanderkam reveals the seven counter-intuitive principles the most time-free people have adopted. She teaches mindset shifts to help you feel calm on the busiest days and tools to help you get more done without feeling overwhelmed. The strategies in this book can help if your life feels out of control, but they can also help if you want to take your career, your relationships, and your personal happiness to the next level. Vanderkam has packed this book with insights from busy yet relaxed professionals, including "time makeovers" of people learning how to use these tools.
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Excellent insight into how to change your mindset to get more enjoyment out of life
- By Susan Cameron on 06-20-18
By: Laura Vanderkam
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The Four Tendencies
- The Indispensable Personality Profiles That Reveal How to Make Your Life Better (and Other People's Lives Better, Too)
- By: Gretchen Rubin
- Narrated by: Gretchen Rubin
- Length: 6 hrs and 37 mins
- Unabridged
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During her multi-book investigation into understanding human nature, Gretchen Rubin realized that by asking the seemingly dry question “How do I respond to expectations?” we gain explosive self-knowledge. She discovered that based on their answer, people fit into Four Tendencies: Upholders, Questioners, Obligers, and Rebels. Our Tendency shapes every aspect of our behavior, so using this framework allows us to make better decisions, meet deadlines, suffer less stress, and engage more effectively.
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Terrible, Repetitive, and Filled with Bad Advice
- By T. Hadnot on 03-08-18
By: Gretchen Rubin
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Coming Alive
- 4 Tools to Defeat Your Inner Enemy, Ignite Creative Expression & Unleash Your Soul's Potential
- By: Barry Michels, Phil Stutz
- Narrated by: Phil Stutz, Barry Michels
- Length: 8 hrs and 44 mins
- Unabridged
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In The Tools, Barry Michels and Phil Stutz revolutionized the world of personal growth and self-actualization by offering doable, dynamic actions that transformed challenges into opportunities for change. Now, in Coming Alive, they provide four vital tools for tapping into the Life Force that resides within each of us - a wellspring of positive energy that is the source of creativity, renewal, confidence, and engagement.
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A Stunning Work of Generosity
- By JTN from Seattle on 10-05-17
By: Barry Michels, and others
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Brain Wash
- Detox Your Mind for Clearer Thinking, Deeper Relationships, and Lasting Happiness
- By: David Perlmutter MD, Austin Perlmutter MD, Kristin Loberg
- Narrated by: Peter Ganim
- Length: 7 hrs and 17 mins
- Unabridged
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Contemporary life provides us with infinite opportunities, along with endless temptations. We can eat whatever we want, whenever we want. We can buy goods and services for rapid delivery. But living in this 24/7 hyper-reality poses serious risks to our physical and mental states, our connections to others, and even to the world at large. Brain Wash builds from a simple premise: Our brains are being gravely manipulated, resulting in behaviors that leave us more lonely, anxious, depressed, distrustful, illness-prone, and overweight than ever before.
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Poor performance and poor writing.
- By Julie on 01-21-20
By: David Perlmutter MD, and others
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The Power of Meaning
- Crafting a Life That Matters
- By: Emily Esfahani Smith
- Narrated by: Mozhan Marnò
- Length: 7 hrs and 17 mins
- Unabridged
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This wise, stirring book argues that the search for meaning can immeasurably deepen our lives and is far more fulfilling than the pursuit of personal happiness. There is a myth in our culture that the search for meaning is some esoteric pursuit - that you have to travel to a distant monastery or page through dusty volumes to figure out life's great secret. The truth is, there are untapped sources of meaning all around us - right here, right now.
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Meandering
- By LS on 09-27-17
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Tell Me More
- Stories About the 12 Hardest Things I'm Learning to Say
- By: Kelly Corrigan
- Narrated by: Kelly Corrigan
- Length: 4 hrs and 25 mins
- Unabridged
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It's a crazy idea: trying to name the phrases that make love and connection possible. But that's just what Kelly Corrigan has set out to do here. In her New York Times best-selling memoirs, Corrigan distilled our core relationships to their essences, showcasing a warm, easy storytelling style. Now, in Tell Me More, she's back with a deeply personal, unfailingly honest, and often hilarious examination of the essential phrases that turn the wheel of life.
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hard but worth it
- By erssmith on 09-19-18
By: Kelly Corrigan
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The Earned Life
- Lose Regret, Choose Fulfillment
- By: Marshall Goldsmith, Mark Reiter
- Narrated by: Marshall Goldsmith
- Length: 8 hrs and 23 mins
- Unabridged
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Goldsmith implores listeners to avoid the Great Western Disease of “I’ll be happy when. . . .” He offers practical advice and exercises aimed at helping us shed the obstacles, especially the failures of imagination, that prevent us from creating our own fulfilling lives. With this book as their guide, listeners can close the gap between what they plan to achieve and what they actually get done—and avoid the trap of existential regret, the kind that reroutes destinies and persecutes our memories.
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Brilliant Book 💛
- By Dr. Lilian Ajayi-Ore on 05-04-22
By: Marshall Goldsmith, and others
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Peak Performance
- Elevate Your Game, Avoid Burnout, and Thrive with the New Science of Success
- By: Brad Stulberg, Steve Magness
- Narrated by: Will Damron
- Length: 6 hrs and 50 mins
- Unabridged
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In revealing the science of great performance and the stories of great performers across a wide range of capabilities, Peak Performance uncovers the secrets of success, and coaches you on how to use them. If you want to take your game to the next level, whatever "your game" may be, Peak Performance will teach you how.
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Great Book!!
- By Anonymous User on 03-23-25
By: Brad Stulberg, and others
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Emotional Agility
- Get Unstuck, Embrace Change, and Thrive in Work and Life
- By: Susan David
- Narrated by: Susan David
- Length: 9 hrs and 21 mins
- Unabridged
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The path to personal and professional fulfillment is rarely straight. Ask anyone who has achieved his or her biggest goals or whose relationships thrive, and you'll hear stories of many unexpected detours along the way. What separates those who master these challenges and those who get derailed? The answer is agility - emotional agility.
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Slow, Simple, and Easy to Comprehend
- By Jules on 04-21-20
By: Susan David
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Reclaiming Conversation
- The Power of Talk in a Digital Age
- By: Sherry Turkle
- Narrated by: Kirsten Potter
- Length: 13 hrs and 11 mins
- Unabridged
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Renowned media scholar Sherry Turkle investigates how a flight from conversation undermines our relationships, creativity, and productivity - and why reclaiming face-to-face conversation can help us regain lost ground. We live in a technological universe in which we are always communicating. And yet we have sacrificed conversation for mere connection. Preeminent author and researcher Sherry Turkle has been studying digital culture for over 30 years. Long an enthusiast for its possibilities, here she investigates a troubling consequence.
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So good, I had to stop listening.
- By Turtle 1 on 12-30-15
By: Sherry Turkle
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Procrastinate on Purpose
- 5 Permissions to Multiply Your Time
- By: Rory Vaden
- Narrated by: Rory Vaden
- Length: 6 hrs and 14 mins
- Unabridged
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New York Times bestselling author and sales-performance trainer Rory Vaden brings his high-energy approach and can-do spirit to the most nagging problem in our professional lives: stalled productivity. Millions are overworked, organizationally challenged, or have a motivation issue that’s holding them back. Vaden presents a simple yet powerful paradigm that will set listeners free to do their best work—on time and without stress and anxiety.
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Mindset and action steps included!
- By Gizmo on 07-30-24
By: Rory Vaden
What listeners say about Black Box Thinking
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- Kathy H
- 03-17-17
intriguing, but repetitive
Started off strong.
Excellent at showing contrast between methods and processes
Very repetitive, Could have been 1/2 as long.
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- Achim Apweiler
- 12-02-19
Must read (listen)
Matthew Syed is using simple comparisons like aviation and health-care to talk about learning lessons
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- Cpoppy
- 09-26-21
why don't all industries do this
Understand that failure leads to progress, growth, and Innovation. the book provided a strong insight into periods in history where failure was covered and then identified the antecedents that pushed for understanding and building upon failure.
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- Craig C.
- 03-12-16
Nicely crafted
The cases illustrating the principles of blame game looking backward and the learning culture going forward were very powerful. It would have been useful to look at some other fields, such as law enforcement, who are more of a mixed bag, there are investigations from within the department, but there is still very much a blame involved with litigation overseeing the process. Learning from mistakes is a fundamental principle from science. Trial and error and Fire-Aim-Shoot are other ways to state the message.
The use of detailed accounts of football (soccer) players could have been shorter without throwing in all of the team names were a little more than was necessary.
The reader's voice was trying and a little difficult to understand. But, I enjoyed the effective narrative and recommend it.
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2 people found this helpful
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- alex
- 05-17-18
learned how to create reduce errors systematically
This is exactly what I needed to hear with imperfect humans being in the driver seat.s
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- Isaiah D.
- 11-22-21
very interesting mind opening book!
very muhc enjoyed the book.
Helps to explain the need as a society to be open minded and think outside of the box especially in terms of how we view a perceived failure and use it to grow
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- Loren
- 11-16-15
A multi-level message, well written and well read
When you begin this book, it seems as if it will be a straight comparison between the airline safety model of reviewing and learning from accidents (open) and the medical system model for covering up mistakes (closed), and it does describe few powerful illustrative examples from each of those fields. However, it turns out to have quite a few more dimensions and lessons, For example, it also turns its focus on the criminal justice system (closed) and the political system (closed). These analyses alone would make it a good book and support a strong argument that learning from mistakes is hugely important.
However, the author takes it a step further and looks at some of the psychological reasons why all of us find it so difficult to admit mistakes (cognitive dissonance), and how we so naturally create narratives that support our original decisions. Like some of the best books in this genre, the book forces us to admit that we also are subject to the same kinds of biases that make it difficult to create and maintain "open" systems that encourage us to regularly test our ideas, even while it provides one example after another of why mistakes are essential to learning.
Simon Slater is a good narrator: pace, accent, and expression contribute to an excellent audio book.
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23 people found this helpful
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- Hoffman
- 05-09-18
The culture we all want
This book concisely outlines the flaws in the way we react and what we need to do to progress a culture of excellence.
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- Andrew Smith
- 01-24-18
Fascinating, required reading!
As an anesthesiologist, the first example of this book strikes fear deep within me, about the death of a healthy young woman undergoing a routine surgery. But to able to learn from this mistake, and to apply it not only to medicine, but to the worlds of business, law, and education, allows the power of errors to be turned from things to be feared to powerful tools for improvement.
Case after case is made, showing how error (and trial & error) can be used for positive change in people and within organizations. From wrongful criminal convictions to designing vacuum cleaners, from airplane crashes to David Beckham’s penalty kicks, Syed presents a compelling argument that errors and mistakes should be embraced, and used as powerful tools for improvement. Just as evolution has turned random mutations into adaptation to environmental challenges, so should “failures” be seen as springboards for positive change.
This book is a must-read for doctors. But almost anyone can benefit from its lessons. My only complaint is that while listening to it, my mind was racing with ways to apply its lessons to my personal and professional life, and it was sometimes hard to concentrate on the book because it sparked so many ideas about how I can use its lessons to improve myself and my work.
Great narration, albeit a British one. Americans will have to translate.
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- Rosa Lydick
- 01-11-19
much needed information for the world today. I le
Much needed information from the world today. Very Educational I learned a lot of things I had not heard of. This book has educated me on Why people think the way they think I will apply this information to my own life.
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