Non-Obvious Thinking

Non-Obvious Thinking Plot Summary

Introduction

We live in a world where obvious thinking has become the default mode. From social media echo chambers to the accelerating pace of modern life, there's less time and space for original thought. Yet the most valuable insights and breakthroughs often come from seeing what others miss—from spotting patterns others overlook or asking questions others haven't considered. Non-obvious thinking isn't about being the smartest person in the room. It's about developing mental flexibility to break free from conventional wisdom. Whether you're an entrepreneur seeking the next big idea, a professional trying to solve complex problems, or simply someone who wants to see the world with fresh eyes, learning to think beyond the obvious can transform how you approach challenges. Throughout these pages, you'll discover practical techniques to create mental space, uncover hidden insights, focus your attention, and add unexpected twists to your thinking—all essential components to seeing what everyone else misses.

Chapter 1: Create Space for Original Perspectives

Creating space for original perspectives starts with recognizing that our minds need room to breathe. In today's hyper-connected world, we're constantly bombarded with information, notifications, and distractions that leave little room for deep thinking. The result is mental clutter that makes it difficult to see beyond the obvious. Wim Hof, known as "The Iceman," demonstrates the power of creating mental space through something as simple as breathing. This extreme athlete has climbed Mount Kilimanjaro in shorts and run half marathons above the Arctic Circle barefoot. His secret? A specialized breathing technique that creates space in his mind for extraordinary focus. Science journalist James Nestor discovered in his research that most of us "overbreathe" by taking shorter, shallower breaths than we should. The "perfect breath," as he found, involves inhaling and exhaling for 5.5 seconds each—a rhythm that can help clear mental fog. Another powerful technique for creating space involves what psychologists call "ditching your prebuttals." A prebuttal is a counterargument to what someone might say before they ever say it—essentially shutting down dialogue before it begins. This mental habit closes us off from new perspectives and keeps our thinking trapped in familiar patterns. By consciously choosing to listen rather than preparing rebuttals, we open ourselves to ideas we might otherwise dismiss. The Non-Obvious 7-Minute Meetup at the South by Southwest conference offers another example of creating space. In this exercise, attendees were encouraged to take a brief pause from the chaos of the conference to make authentic connections with strangers. These "oasis moments" provided a reset that allowed participants to be more present and receptive to new ideas. The meetups sparked business partnerships, client engagements, and even romantic relationships—all from simply creating a small space for human connection. Creating space can also involve embracing a degree of risk or danger. The Land, a playground in North Wales, demonstrates this principle by encouraging children to use hammers, saws, and even build fires with minimal adult supervision. Counterintuitively, this playground reports no more injuries than conventional ones. Researchers theorize that the apparent dangers motivate children to play more carefully and develop greater awareness—exactly the kind of heightened attention that leads to non-obvious thinking. To create your own mental space, start by paying attention to your breathing patterns. Set reminders throughout your day to take deeper, more intentional breaths. When entering conversations, practice listening without formulating responses. Schedule small "oasis moments" during busy days, and occasionally step outside your comfort zone by trying something that feels slightly risky. These practices will gradually clear the mental clutter that prevents you from seeing what others miss.

Chapter 2: Ask Better Questions to Uncover Insights

The quality of your insights depends directly on the quality of your questions. Pulitzer Prize-winning journalist Jacqui Banaszynski teaches her students to avoid pre-scripted interview questions and instead use a dynamic, circular technique where each new question builds on the previous answer. This approach shifts the focus from seeking specific answers to eliciting stories that reveal deeper truths. When Rohit first started interviewing guests for his podcast, he followed the traditional method of preparing a list of sequential questions. After a dozen episodes, he realized that the most engaging conversations rarely followed his prepared script. Upon learning about Banaszynski's circular questioning method, he began crafting each question based on the previous answer. The result was more authentic conversations that revealed unexpected insights his scripted questions would never have uncovered. This technique works because it puts people "back into the movie of their own life," as Banaszynski explains. Rather than asking direct questions that prompt rehearsed responses, story questions invite people to relive experiences and share details they might otherwise overlook. These seemingly minor details often contain the seeds of powerful insights. Understanding unspoken thoughts and feelings is another crucial skill for uncovering insights. In Korean culture, this ability is called "nunchi" (pronounced noon-chee), while Japanese culture refers to it as "kuuki wo yomu" (reading the air). Both concepts involve discerning meaning beyond what's explicitly stated. By paying attention to body language, vocal tones, and other subtle cues, you can access an entire hidden layer of communication that most people miss. Getting your hands dirty—literally experiencing something firsthand rather than just reading about it—can also lead to surprising insights. When Uber CEO Dara Khosrowshahi went undercover as a driver on his own platform, he discovered so many problems that he called an all-company meeting with the subject line: "Why we suck." His firsthand experience revealed issues that countless reports and meetings had failed to identify. To start uncovering your own insights, practice asking follow-up questions that build on what you've just heard rather than moving to the next item on your mental list. Pay attention to afterthoughts and seemingly unimportant details people mention—these often contain the most interesting revelations. Watch people's body language and practice your nunchi by observing interactions in public places. Whenever possible, choose to experience things firsthand rather than just reading about them. These practices will help you see the layers of meaning that lie beneath the surface of everyday conversations and experiences.

Chapter 3: Focus on What Truly Matters

In the search for alien life, scientists focus on what they call the "Goldilocks zone"—regions around stars where conditions are neither too hot nor too cold for liquid water to exist. Rather than broadly searching the entire universe, they concentrate on the one factor most likely to indicate the presence of life: water. This targeted approach exemplifies the importance of focusing on what truly matters. Elisha Otis demonstrated the power of focus when he invented the safety brake for elevators in 1853. Before his innovation, elevators were widely used for freight but never for people due to the danger of cables snapping. At the World's Fair that year, Otis staged a dramatic demonstration where an assistant cut the support rope of the elevator platform he was standing on. Rather than plummeting to his death, Otis remained safely suspended thanks to his safety brake. The demonstration highlighted that Otis had identified the real problem: not just making elevators safer, but convincing a skeptical public that they could trust their lives to his invention. When writing the final Megatrends edition of his Non-Obvious Trend series, Rohit had to identify the most prominent themes across more than 125 trends he had introduced over ten years. By looking for common patterns, he discovered an underlying theme he called "human mode"—the idea that as our world becomes increasingly digital, people place greater value on authentic, sometimes imperfect experiences delivered by humans. This process of discovering the common "water" among seemingly unrelated ideas allowed him to focus on what truly mattered. Psychologist Barry Schwartz's influential book The Paradox of Choice introduced another important focusing technique. Schwartz distinguishes between "maximizers" who exhaustively research every option before deciding, and "satisficers" who establish criteria for what's "good enough" and choose the first option that meets those standards. Interestingly, maximizers often feel more regret despite making objectively better choices. Learning to be a satisficer—to focus on what's sufficient rather than perfect—can help you avoid decision paralysis and commit more fully to developing the ideas you've chosen. To sharpen your own focus, practice identifying the real problem beneath surface issues. Use the "five whys" method popularized by Toyota founder Sakichi Toyoda: ask why something is the way it is, then follow each explanation with another "why" until you reach the root cause. When overwhelmed with information or ideas, look for common patterns or themes—your "water." And when making decisions, try thinking like a satisficer by establishing clear criteria for what's "good enough" rather than endlessly searching for the perfect option.

Chapter 4: Find the Twist in Conventional Thinking

The famous duck-rabbit optical illusion has fascinated researchers for over a century. Some see a duck first, others a rabbit, but both interpretations are equally valid. What's fascinating isn't which animal you see first but your ability to switch between perspectives—to find the twist in how you view the same image. Dr. Seuss demonstrated the power of finding a twist when his editor challenged him to write a children's book using no more than 225 words from a predetermined list of 348. Rising to the challenge, Seuss wrote The Cat in the Hat using 236 words. Later, when a friend dared him to write a book using only 50 unique words, he created Green Eggs and Ham—which became his bestselling book ever. By embracing these constraints rather than seeing them as limitations, Seuss found a creative twist that produced some of his most enduring work. Artist Henri Matisse discovered a similar twist late in life when illness confined him to his bed and wheelchair. Unable to paint standing up as he had done throughout his career, he began creating paper cutouts, describing the new technique as "drawing with scissors." What began as an adaptation to physical limitations produced some of his most celebrated artwork. Similarly, Nintendo composer Koji Kondo turned extreme data storage limitations into an advantage when creating the iconic Super Mario Brothers soundtrack, using just five repeating tones looped in unexpected ways. Finding the twist often involves seeing both sides of a situation simultaneously. This ability to hold opposing ideas in mind—to see both the duck and the rabbit—opens up possibilities that others miss. It requires mental flexibility and a willingness to question assumptions that others take for granted. To practice finding your own twists, try introducing constraints to your thinking process. Limit your time, resources, or tools and see how these boundaries push you in new directions. Look for opportunities to flip conventional wisdom by asking, "What if we did the opposite?" When examining a problem, try to see multiple perspectives simultaneously rather than forcing yourself to choose one correct view. These practices will help you discover creative twists that transform ordinary thinking into something truly non-obvious.

Chapter 5: Embrace Constraints to Boost Creativity

Constraints might seem like obstacles to creativity, but they often function as catalysts for innovation. The story of Dr. Seuss shows how limitations can spark brilliant ideas rather than stifle them. When challenged to write a book using only 50 words, he produced Green Eggs and Ham—his most successful book ever. Rather than viewing the word limit as a handicap, Seuss used it as a framework that forced him to think more creatively. Renowned artist Henri Matisse experienced a similar creative boost through constraint when illness confined him to his bed and wheelchair. Unable to stand and paint as he had throughout his career, he developed a new technique using paper cutouts that he called "drawing with scissors." This method, born from physical limitations, produced some of his most celebrated works. Likewise, Nintendo composer Koji Kondo transformed severe data storage constraints into an advantage when creating the Super Mario Brothers soundtrack, using just five repeating tones to create one of gaming's most iconic musical scores. James Dyson's journey to reinvent the vacuum cleaner illustrates how constraints can drive persistence and innovation. After seeing a cyclonic separator in a sawmill, Dyson wondered if he could miniaturize the technology for home use. The constraint of creating a smaller version that maintained the same functionality led him through more than 5,000 failed prototypes before success. Rather than giving up, he used each failure to refine his approach, eventually creating the revolutionary dual-cyclone vacuum technology that would build his billion-dollar company. Aaron Sams and Jonathan Bergmann, chemistry teachers at a small Colorado high school, embraced constraints in education by flipping the traditional classroom model. Instead of using class time for lectures, they recorded their lessons for students to watch at home, then used class time for questions, discussions, and hands-on labs. This constraint—limited classroom time—pushed them to reimagine education in a way that became a movement, popularized by platforms like Khan Academy. To harness constraints in your own thinking, practice the art of subtraction. As writer Antoine de Saint-Exupéry noted, "Perfection is achieved not when there is nothing more to add, but when there is nothing left to take away." Try limiting your idea development time, reducing the number of people involved in a decision, or placing budget constraints on a project. You might also introduce brevity constraints by challenging yourself to communicate complex ideas in fewer words, similar to Twitter's original character limit that forced concise expression.

Chapter 6: Connect Unrelated Ideas at Intersections

Some of the most profound innovations occur at the intersection of seemingly unrelated fields. Tu Youyou, who would later become the first Chinese woman to win the Nobel Prize in Medicine, demonstrated this principle when tasked with finding a treatment for chloroquine-resistant malaria. Rather than limiting her research to modern medicine, Tu explored ancient Chinese medical texts, eventually discovering a 1,600-year-old treatment that involved soaking the qinghao plant (sweet wormwood) in water. By connecting traditional wisdom with modern science, she developed a life-saving malaria treatment that she described as "a true gift from old Chinese medicine." This intersection thinking—combining ideas from different domains—has led to numerous breakthroughs across industries. The evolution of bank-owned cafés illustrates this approach in business. Recognizing that people value coffee shops as antidotes to remote work isolation while still preferring face-to-face financial advice, several large banks created hybrid spaces that function as both coffee shops and bank branches. These cafés succeed precisely because they sit at the intersection of multiple consumer needs. Steven Spielberg used a similar approach when creating his science fiction film Minority Report. He gathered scientists and thinkers from various fields for a weekend brainstorming session in a Santa Monica hotel. This diverse group helped envision future technologies that have since become reality: self-driving cars, gesture-controlled computers, personalized advertising, and biometric security systems. By bringing together experts from different disciplines, Spielberg created a believable future world that has proven remarkably prescient. Ben's Non-Obvious Dinner series applies this same principle to conversation. These annual gatherings bring together CEOs, entrepreneurs, scientists, artists, and even high school students to discuss non-obvious ideas that could change the world. By creating intersections between people who would rarely interact, the dinners have generated numerous innovative concepts, from teaching drone piloting in public schools to predicting privacy as a future luxury. To practice intersection thinking yourself, try the "What Would They Do?" technique. When facing a challenge, imagine how someone in a completely different field might approach it. How would a NASA engineer solve your marketing problem? How might a novelist approach your data analysis challenge? You can also actively seek out diverse rooms and conversations. Attend events outside your industry, read magazines focused on unfamiliar topics, or engage with media that represents perspectives different from your own. These practices will help you find valuable intersections that others miss.

Chapter 7: Develop Your Unique Thought Vocabulary

When Phil Dusenberry, CEO of advertising agency BBDO, was preparing a pitch for General Electric, his team had developed the tagline: "We make the things that make life good." The night before the presentation, Dusenberry refined it to: "GE... We bring good things to life." This subtle shift in wording created a slogan that would serve the company for decades—not just in advertising but as a rallying cry for employees and a purpose statement for stakeholders. The words we choose shape how others perceive our ideas. This is why developing your own unique "argot"—specialized language that communicates your perspective—can make your thinking more memorable and influential. Argot originally referred to the slang used by thieves and rogues in France but now describes any shared language among members of a subculture. Computer hackers have their argot, as do high school students and professional athletes. Charley Douglass demonstrated the power of specialized language through his invention, the "Laff Box." This mysterious device, which looked like a combination typewriter and portable piano, could produce hundreds of types of audience laughter for television shows. Douglass was notoriously secretive about how it worked, helping him maintain a monopoly on "sweetening" TV shows with laugh tracks. His innovation didn't just add sound; it created a new vocabulary for how audiences experienced television comedy. Today, we can enhance our creativity through collaboration with both human partners and technology tools like generative artificial intelligence. These augmentation methods function like Douglass's Laff Box—they don't replace creative thinking but enhance it. When Rohit and Ben were writing this book, they regularly fed chapters into AI tools and prompted them to provide critical feedback from different perspectives. This collaborative approach helped refine their ideas and language. To develop your own thought vocabulary, practice thinking in taglines by summarizing your concepts as succinctly as possible. Try twisting existing words to convey original ideas, as Rohit did when he coined the term "unperfect" rather than "imperfect" to describe the growing appeal of intentionally flawed products. You can also generate criticism for your ideas by seeking feedback from diverse sources or using AI tools to simulate different perspectives. These practices will help you craft a distinctive language that makes your non-obvious thinking more compelling and memorable.

Summary

Non-obvious thinking isn't about being smarter than everyone else—it's about seeing what others miss by creating mental space, asking better questions, focusing on what matters, and finding unexpected twists. Throughout this journey, we've explored practical techniques to break free from conventional wisdom and develop a more flexible, original mindset. As Arthur Conan Doyle wrote through his character Sherlock Holmes, "The world is full of obvious things which nobody by any chance ever observes." The challenge is to question our mental maps, look beyond what we think we know, and develop the courage to see perspectives different from our own. Start today by creating just five minutes of mental space, asking one circular question that builds on someone's answer, or introducing a simple constraint to a creative task. Remember that non-obvious thinking isn't a destination but a practice—one that becomes more natural with every step you take toward seeing what others miss.

About Author

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Rohit Bhargava

Rohit Bhargava is a leading authority on marketing, trends and innovation. He is the founder of the Non-Obvious Company and is widely considered one of the most entertaining and original keynote speakers on marketing disruption and innovation in the world. He is the #1 WSJ and USA TODAY bestselling author of eight books on topics as wide ranging as the future of business, building a human brand with personality, and how to create a more diverse and inclusive world. Rohit is an Adjunct Professor at Georgetown University and writes a monthly column for GQ Brazil. He is married and lives with his wife and two boys in the Washington DC area, loves the Olympics and actively hates cauliflower.

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