Clear, er, Skin
This week, we read Shane Parrish’s book, Clear Thinking.[1] The author identifies challenges that get in the way of thinking clearly, strategies to overcome those challenges, and a framework for decision making. The book is a compilation of wisdom and learnings from business leaders, cross-referencing material we have read from authors including Katheryn Schulz, Thomas Wedell-Wedellsborg, and Daniel Kahneman. Parrish shares many ‘been there, done that’ anecdotes and is quick to drop names for credibility.[2]
I will briefly list the four enemies of clear thinking and his four strengths to overcome those threats. I then want to apply these principles to a man with a skin condition.
Problems and Solutions
Parrish lists four defaults that we instinctively follow in the absence of clear thought. I’ll combine each term with a brief explanation from the text.
- The emotion default, which can make the best of us become idiots.[3]
- The ego default, where the desire to feel right can overpower our desire to be right.[4]
- The social default, when the fear of losing social capital outweighs the potential upside of deviating from the social norm.[5]
- The inertia default, which can cause us to resist change, particularly when something is “good enough.”[6]
He says that it takes more than willpower to overcome these enemies.[7] The proposed strengths are:
- Self-accountability: taking responsibility for yourself.[8]
- Self-knowledge: knowing your own strengths and weaknesses.[9]
- Self-control: the ability to master fears, desires, and other emotions.[10]
- Self-confidence: trusting in your abilities and your value to others.[11]
Rather than expanding on any one idea, I thought it would be fun to apply the enemies and strengths to an Old Testament character facing a big decision.
Naaman, a Mighty Warrior
If you aren’t familiar with Naaman, I’d encourage you to read 2 Kings 5 in its entirety. We get an overview of his problem in verse 1.
The king of Aram had great admiration for Naaman, the commander of his army, because through him the Lord had given Aram great victories. But though Naaman was a mighty warrior, he suffered from leprosy.[12]
Naaman is a celebrity. He can drop the name King. He likely commands the whole army, one that means business. Naaman is a visible leader with a hidden problem: leprosy.
The inertia default is present though not in the text. Naaman can deal with it. He can keep his armor on and hide his skin condition. The Mandalorian never took his helmet off. This is the way, right?
Naaman is presented a solution. His wife had a young servant girl who was captured from Israel.
3 One day the girl said to her mistress, “I wish my master would go to see the prophet in Samaria. He would heal him of his leprosy.”
Naaman’s social default presents a challenge to accepting this advice. First, it came from a lowly servant girl who was as far away from his social standing as one could be. Secondly, Naaman deals with kings, not foreign prophets. However, his king told him to go visit the prophet, so he had cover.
His ego default kicked into high gear. Naaman took gifts and a letter from his king to Israel’s king.
So Naaman started out, carrying as gifts 750 pounds of silver, 150 pounds of gold, and ten sets of clothing. 6 The letter to the king of Israel said: “With this letter I present my servant Naaman. I want you to heal him of his leprosy.”
The proposed solution was to go find the prophet, but what does a servant girl know about foreign relations? Naaman went straight to the top and he was not looking for charity. His way felt right. It was right. Right?
Of course, the king of Israel couldn’t do anything except tear his clothes in dismay. In strode Naaman in full regalia, ready to trade a king’s ransom for a cure. Neither man was thinking clearly, and word was traveling fast.
The prophet Elisha found out what was happening. He sent a message to the king of Israel:
8b “Why are you so upset? Send Naaman to me, and he will learn that there is a true prophet here in Israel.”
Naaman’s ego default went from bad to worse. First, he went to Elisha’s house and had to wait outside. Then, Elisha sent a message to go wash seven times in the Jordan River to be healed. No face to face. No respect. Here comes the emotion default to join the ego.
11 But Naaman became angry and stalked away. “I thought he would certainly come out to meet me!” he said. “I expected him to wave his hand over the leprosy and call on the name of the Lord his God and heal me! 12 Aren’t the rivers of Damascus, the Abana and the Pharpar, better than any of the rivers of Israel? Why shouldn’t I wash in them and be healed?” So Naaman turned and went away in a rage.
Naaman needed help finding the strength to overcome his defaults. Up first was self-confidence. People with self-confidence listen to the feedback given rather than shop around for more opinions.[13] Naaman’s officers encouraged him to go wash and be cured.
Next came self-control. Rather than continue the temper tantrum, Naaman did as instructed and was healed. Not only did his skin condition clear, Naaman’s self-accountability took responsibility for his actions and his life.
15 Then Naaman and his entire party went back to find the man of God. They stood before him, and Naaman said, “Now I know that there is no God in all the world except in Israel.
The remaining countermeasure is self-knowledge, knowing what you can and cannot do. Naaman left Israel with two loads of dirt, a symbolic act of bringing the Hebrew God home with him.[14] He could change his beliefs with a new reliance on God. He could not change either his relationship with his king or the king’s beliefs. Naaman confesses this reality, and Elisha simply says, “Go in peace.”
Our ability to think clearly is clouded by System One reactions: emotional outbursts, pride, the fear of losing status, and a tendency to resist change. Eventually, System Two shows up as that little voice asking, “What were you thinking, you idiot?”[15] It might not come easy, yet Parrish encourages us to take charge by owning our actions, knowing our strengths, mastering our emotions, and trusting ourselves.
[1] Shane Parrish, Clear Thinking: Turning Ordinary Moments into Extraordinary Results (New York, NY: Portfolio/Penguin, 2023).
[2] I would drop Charlie Munger’s name six times if I could!
[3] Shane Parrish, Clear Thinking, 15.
[4] Shane Parrish, Clear Thinking, 21.
[5] Shane Parrish, Clear Thinking, 25. Parrish credits Daniel Kahneman, Thinking, Fast and Slow, (New York: Farrar, Straus and Giroux, 2011), 292.
[6] Shane Parrish, Clear Thinking, 30-31.
[7] Shane Parrish, Clear Thinking, 39.
[8] Shane Parrish, Clear Thinking, 55.
[9] Shane Parrish, Clear Thinking, 58.
[10] Shane Parrish, Clear Thinking, 60.
[11] Shane Parrish, Clear Thinking, 63.
[12] All verses are from 2 Kings Chapter 5 using the New Living Translation.
[13] Shane Parrish, Clear Thinking, 66.
[14] Ancient cultures often viewed gods as territorial specific to a land. See, for example, Ruth 1:14-18. With this mindset, it is fitting that Naaman took some of the land with him.
[15] Shane Parrish, Clear Thinking, 8.
About the Author
Rich
7 responses to “Clear, er, Skin”
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Rich, this is good work. I wonder how you interpret the king of Israel’s response through Parrish’s defaults. Which default did he fall to when presented with the letter?
Wrong book. The king tore his clothes, which sounds more like a failure of nerve.
I absolutely love Parrish’s quote, “Emotions can make even the best of us into idiots.”[1] The king panicked because he couldn’t cure this mighty man’s leprosy. Who said he needed to be the source of the cure? Kick in some self-control and change your shirt. Kick in some self-knowledge and know your strengths and weaknesses. His weakness is that he cannot heal. His strengths are that he is a King appointed by God and he knows a guy that seems to have a supernatural anointing.
Let’s go a bit further and use Safeguard Strategy 2: Automatic Rules for Success.[2] If the king invoked a rule that said, “Call the prophet anytime a crisis arises,” then he would be less likely to make a decision without first seeking Godly counsel.
The framework extends. Thanks for the question.
[1] Shane Parrish, Clear Thinking, 15.
[2] Shane Parrish, Clear Thinking, 103.
Rich, what a wonderful way to for concepts of the book to be applied. Storytelling does make it make sense in context. Could the inertia default be seen in Naaman’s approach to reach out to Israel? He was doing what may have always been done to get something from another kingdom- with riches and pride. It is not until Naaman’s sets aside these established things that he can move forward.
Good extension, Jess.
Regarding the inertia default, Parish writes, “Once something becomes ‘good enough,’ we can stop the effort and still get decent results.”[1] A complete healing, both physical and spiritual, did not fit within his default mode of using force, wealth, or influence to get what he wants. For Naaman, ‘good enough’ meant deal with what is in front of me with the same bag of tricks.
This is a good pause for me. Am I so fixed in my ways that I am missing an entirely new and better reality? I’m reminded of the System 2 approach of seeking the outside view.[2] Parrish’s fifth safeguard strategy, Shifting Your Perspective, gets to the heart of purposefully asking others for advice.[3]
[1] Shane Parrish, Clear Thinking, 31.
[2] Daniel Kahneman, Thinking, Fast and Slow, 245.
[3] Shane Parrish, Clear Thinking, 111-112.
Rich, I value your inclusion of Naaman’s story in your post. It’s fascinating to note that Naaman required both physical and spiritual healing, encompassing his pride, emotions, and social standing. In the book, Shane explains how emotions, ego, and social pressures can obstruct clear thinking. Naaman had to rely on external influences such as officials and a prophet for guidance. Could Naaman have avoided his anger and pride if he had practiced more self-knowledge or self-control from the start?
That is one of Parrish’s premises, to install safeguards so that we are more likely to exercise self-knowledge or self-control rather than stick with our defaults.
This is an aspect of the Bible that is so helpful. The characters are approachable. If Naaman had his act together, then he wouldn’t have made the final edit. If the disciples were perfect followers that understood Jesus, then where is the encouragement for when I completely miss the boat? If I was Peter, I would have ripped that whole “get behind me, Satan” out of the early transcripts.
Parrish says, “When you put outcome over ego, you get better results.”[1] Isn’t this the fundamental truth of belief in Jesus, placing his forgiveness and his provision above my ego—my desire to do it my way?
Naaman is famous because he put ego ahead of results. Yet, it was the vivid contrast between his way and God’s way that provoked him to worship the one true God. 2 Corinthians 12:9 says, “My grace is all you need. My power works best in weakness.”
[1] Shane Parrish, Clear Thinking, 50.
Thank you for that response! I love how you highlight God’s way of working with people like Naaman. Jesus didn’t choose us because we were perfect or had it all together; He chose us because we are His children, created and loved by Him. He pursued us even while we rejected Him and didn’t truly know Him. In our mess, it was His love, not just rules or expectations, that won us over. It’s incredible to realize that Someone is so deeply in love with us, and even more amazing that it’s Jesus Himself.