The following are excerpts from the book entitled THE INFLUENTIAL MIND that I read recently.
1. When you provide someone with new data, they quickly accept evidence that confirms their preconceived notions and assess counterevidence with a critical eye.
2. When we have a strong motivation to believe that something is true, even the sturdiest proof to the contrary will fall on deaf ears.
3. The greater your cognitive capacity, the greater your ability to rationalize and interpret information at will, and to creatively twist data to fit your opinions.
4. While we may instinctively launch into an argument with a hefty sack
of evidence to explain why we are right and the other side is wrong, this may lead us astray.
5. In today's world, the ease by which we can find "data" and "evidence" to discredit any opinion---and , at the same time--, uncover new information to support our own--is unprecedented.
6. Preestablished opinions are very difficult to change, even when they are wrong.
