Improve mental health 

Mental wellbeing are essential for success in every area of life, yet they are not taught in school. Mental skills are the skills we use to manage our thoughts and emotions. They enable us to control our reactions to the events in our lives. They help us to stay calm in the face of adversity and make rational decisions when we're under pressure.

Overview

Here are 4 mental skills that school never taught you:

1. Critical thinking;

2. How to formulate good questions;

3. How to ideas and takes;

4. Tools for thinking.

Let’s dive in!

1.) Critical thinking

Critical thinking is a learned ability that must be taught. 

Most individuals never learn critical thinking, putting everything in our lives at risk. 

Critical thinking involves logical analysis and comprehension of the links between concepts, making it a fundamental skill for success.

Image generated by DALL-E

The consequences of our inability to think critically:

• Our failure to process and analyze information effectively can act as a massive speed bump in our success.

• Many people learn to parrot others' ideas without developing their own.

The world is a conversation, not a chorus; our job is to draw our own conclusions.

Critical thinking skills not taught in school often include:

1. Pattern recognition:

   • Identify commonalities between people, events, and scenarios.

   • Crucial for deducing danger and prospering.

2. Reverse engineering:

   • Begin with the end result in mind and work backward to determine necessary steps.

   • Essential for creating and problem-solving.

3. Inference:

   • Analyze scattered facts to deduce why and how certain outcomes occurred.

   • Smart thinkers don't always need all the facts.

4. Prediction:

   • Understand cause-and-effect to constantly determine the consequences of actions.

   • Enables making beneficial decisions and avoiding negative outcomes.

5. Synthesis:

   • Sort through information daily, retaining what's relevant and discarding what's not.

   • Allows focusing on what matters, enhancing the brain's efficiency.

     
     

     

     Image generated by DALL-E

     
     

     
     

2.) How to formulate good questions

With information everywhere, our barrier to access is the ability to ask good questions. 

There are no bad questions, only bad answers: formulating good questions leads to greater knowledge and understanding.

Qualities of good questions include: 

• Precise

• Clear

• To the point

• Not too general or too specific

• Stimulate critical thinking and encourage deep reflection

• Based on genuine curiosity

How to Formulate Good Questions:

1. Be clear about what you want to know:

   • Understand the goal and purpose of the question.

   • Specific goals make it easier to formulate a good question.

2. Do your background research:

   • Consult both primary and secondary sources.

   • Identify the type of question: Factual, Analytical, or Evaluative.

3. Word your question precisely:

   • Avoid vagueness to facilitate succinct answers.

   • Avoid excessive specificity to ensure sufficient evidence.

4. Consider the audience:

   • Identify who will answer the question.

   • Tailor complexity based on the expertise of the audience.

Example:

• Topic: Effect of social media on teenagers’ mental health

• Broad Question: What are the effects of social media on teenagers’ mental health?

• Precise Question: To what extent does excessive use of social media lead to depression in teenagers?

Good questions are essential for success and acquiring greater knowledge.

Image generated by DALL-E

3.) How to ideas and takes

Information is widely accessible, but not all content is of quality. It is important to vet ideas and takes by asking key questions.

Vetting questions could include:

1. Is the source credible?

   • Ensure the source is an expert.

   • Consider if the source has "skin in the game."

2. Does the idea or take stand up to scrutiny?

   • Examine the idea critically.

   • Look for alternative explanations.

   • Think like a skeptical detective.

3. What are the ulterior motives of the source?

   • Consider the source's motivations.

   • Evaluate potential biases.

   • Be aware of any hidden agendas.

4. How does this idea or take make me feel?

   • Assess personal reactions.

   • Listen to your gut reactions.

   • Ensure alignment with your beliefs and values.

By asking these questions, one can effectively vet ideas and takes to filter valuable content into their mental space.

Image generated by DALL-E

4.) Tools for thinking 

Mental models, first principles thinking, and deductive reasoning are crucial for good thinking practices.

Success is derived from learning how to think, not just what to think.

Thinking Practices:

1. Mental Models:

   1. Simplified representations of reality.

   2. Based on personal experiences and beliefs.

   3. Useful for decision-making (e.g., cost-benefit analysis).

   4. Identify and evaluate mental models for problem-solving.'

   5. Example of the mental model cost-benefit analysis: 

      1. Identifying Components:

         • Costs: Purchase price, insurance, maintenance.

         • Benefits: Convenience, time-saving, mobility.

      2. Application:

         • Imagine you're deciding whether to buy a car.

         • Use the mental model of cost-benefit analysis to assess if the benefits (convenience, time-saving) outweigh the costs (purchase price, insurance, maintenance).

      3. Decision-Making:

         • If the benefits significantly outweigh the costs, the mental model suggests it's a favorable decision.

         • If the costs are too high in comparison to the benefits, it might be advisable to reconsider the decision.

      4. Flexibility:

         • This mental model is flexible and can be applied to various decisions, not just purchasing a car.

         • For example, you could use it to evaluate whether to take on a new project, start a new habit, or invest in a particular opportunity.

2. First Principles Thinking: 

   1. Identify the Basics:

      1. Coffee consists of water, coffee grounds, and heat.

   2. Break it Down:

      1. Water: Essential for brewing.

      2. Coffee Grounds: Provide flavor.

      3. Heat: Required for extraction.

   3. Rebuild from Scratch:

      1. Instead of improving an existing coffee maker, consider a completely different approach.

      2. What if we use a different method to heat water or extract flavors?

   4. Innovative Solution:

      1. Develop a novel coffee-making method that doesn't rely on conventional machines but addresses the fundamental need for water, coffee grounds, and heat.

3. Deductive Reasoning:

   1. Logical approach to draw conclusions.

   2. Involves premises, evidence, and conclusions.

   3. Can only lead from certain premises to a definite conclusion.

   4. Example of Deductive Reasoning:

      1. Premise: All humans need food and water to survive.

      2. Premise: Jack is human.

      3. Conclusion: Jack needs food and water to survive.

(Something important to note: deductive reasoning relies on logic and facts for a valid conclusion. If premises are false, the conclusion will also be false.)

In a world with abundant information, these thinking practices are essential for success, emphasizing the importance of learning how to think critically.

Conclusion

There you have it — 4 mental skills school never taught you. I hope the examples and definitions in this guide help you pave the way for a future where resilience, creativity, focus, and emotional intelligence become our most valuable tools, shaping not only our minds but the very fabric of our success and fulfillment

I’d love to hear from you: 

• Among the four mental skills discussed in this, which one do you feel is most lacking in your current skill set? 

• How do you plan to develop and integrate it into your daily life?

Want to feel good?

https://www.healthline.com/health/happy-hormone

Find what works for you because what works for you not work for other people so try different tools that will help you.

Have a wonderful week, all.
Much love to you and yours. ❤️