Easter Inspiration: How to have better arguments, what data can't do and why art matters
The past few months, and indeed the last year, has been challenging, so it’s understandable to feel as though things aren’t going well. But this wonderful post from Jeremy Connell-Waite on LinkedIn caught my attention and reminded me of the reason and optimism expressed in Hans Rosling’s Factfulness and Steven Pinker’s Enlightenment Now, i.e. that humans have achieved some pretty amazing things over the last few decades. Below is Jeremy’s brilliant illustrated summary of Johan Norberg’s Progress: Ten Reasons to Look Forward to the Future that explores some similar themes:
I noticed a lot of diverse and interesting content over the last month. I’ve highlighted three examples below that stood out:
How to have better arguments online | Ian Leslie | The Guardian
Ian Leslie’s new book, Conflicted, is all about how to have better disagreements - whether that’s in public, at work or at home. I haven’t read the book yet (it’s on my reading list!) but this Guardian long read is an excellent introduction. It provides some fascinating insights into why the times we live in today feel particularly fractured and advice on how we can learn to argue and debate more constructively.
Something we often fail to consider during discussions is other people’s sense of identity. In the article, Ian talks about parents who refuse vaccines. Despite being smart and highly educated, these people ignore mainstream medical advice based on sound science. But this is not just because of a belief but because of an “act of identification”. The refusal is more about who one is and with whom one identifies than who one isn’t or whom one opposes. As Ian explains:
“That our opinions come tangled up with our sense of ourselves is not necessarily a bad thing, but it is something we need to be aware of when trying to get someone to do something they do not want to do, whether that’s stop smoking, adapt to a new working practice, or vote for our candidate. Our goal should be to prise the disputed opinion or action away from the person’s sense of self – to lower the identity stakes. The skilful disagreer finds a way of helping their adversary conclude that they can say or do something different, and still be themselves.”
What data can’t do | Hannah Fry | The New Yorker
Data and statistics play such an influential role in our lives: from the algorithms that determine what we listen to on Spotify and see in our social media newsfeeds, to the statistical models that determine public policy. But whilst statistics can be used to illuminate the world and help remedy our human fallibilities, they can also amplify these fallibilities, too.
In reviewing two books (Counting: How We Use Numbers to Decide What Matters by Deborah Stone and How to Make the World Add Up by Tim Harford), British mathematician Hannah Fry looks at examples that demonstrate some of the limitations of data and statistics. One such example that can affect all of us in our professional lives is Goodhart’s law, which states that once a useful number becomes a measure of success, it ceases to be a useful number. An example from history: America’s first transcontinental railroad. Built in the eighteen-sixties, companies were paid per mile of track. But a section outside Omaha, Nebraska, was laid down in a wide arc, rather than a straight line, adding several unnecessary (yet profitable) miles to the rails.
The trouble arises whenever we use numerical proxies for the thing we care about. Deborah Stone quotes the environmental economist James Gustave Speth: “We tend to get what we measure, so we should measure what we want.”
Art Matters | Neil Gaiman (illustrated by Chris Riddell)
The alchemy of art and creativity is something that continues to fascinate me. And so I was drawn to this lovely little book that brings together four different speeches, poems and creative manifestos by Neil Gaiman exploring how reading, imagining and creating can transform the world and our lives. Beautifully illustrated by Chris Riddell, it’s a really accessible book that can provide anyone with a jolt of creative inspiration!
Whether you’re looking to create something original or simply looking for ways to think a bit differently, I’d highly recommend taking a look. There are many great lines and sections but one that stood out for me was this (although I think this could apply to anyone, not just freelancers ??):
