Black Box Thinking

The Surprising Truth About Success

By: Matthew Syed

Narrated by: Simon Slater

Length: 12 hrs and 27 mins

Publisher's summary

Columnist for The Times and best-selling author of Bounce: The myth of talent and the power of practice Matthew Syed argues that the key to success is a positive attitude to failure. 

What links the Mercedes Formula One team with Google? What links Dave Braisford's Team Sky and the aviation industry? What is the connection between the inventor James Dyson and the footballer David Beckham? They are all Black Box Thinkers. 

Whether developing a new product, honing a core skill or just trying to get a critical decision right, Black Box Thinkers aren't afraid to face up to mistakes. In fact, they see failure as the very best way to learn. Rather than denying their mistakes, blaming others or attempting to spin their way out of trouble, these institutions and individuals interrogate errors as part of their future strategy for success. 

How many of us, hand on heart, can say that we have such a healthy relationship with failure? Learning from failure has the status of a cliché, but this book reveals the astonishing story behind the most powerful method of learning known to mankind, and reveals the arsenal of techniques wielded by some of the world's most innovative organizations. 

Their lessons can be applied across every field - from sport to education, from business to health. Using gripping case studies, exclusive interviews and really practical takeaways, Matthew Syed - the award-winning journalist and best-selling author of Bounce - explains how to turn failure into success, and shows us how we can all become better Black Box Thinkers. 

©2015 Matthew Syed (P)2015 Hodder & Stoughton

Great book, so-so audio performance

I absolutely loved the book. It's interesting, applicable, and very well written. The only downside was that the narrator was breathy and made so many mouth noises. It was incredibly distracting.

Learning from mistakes. A must read for Everyone!!

This is a must read for everyone.. Except a small randomised control group 😂

Seriously, this is the best book about learning from failures.
it starts off talking about how the Aviation industry is based around learning from their failures, from crashes and near misses. Hence they have the Black Box for recording what happened in the lead up to a crash. But the culture of the Healthcare system is almost the exact opposite, they try not to investigate problems and learn from mistakes and deaths. Instead being worried about blame being attributed.

This book explains and extols the virtues of applying the scientific method to social concerns.
All geisters, social entrepreneurs, organisers, managers, staff, students, parents and you should read this and ensure that you create and utilise feedback loops in your organisations and life.

Everyone should be taught Black Box Thinking

This has changed my thinking towards tackling any situation or problem. Students of all ages will benefit from studying this material.
Leaders should strive to develop organisational culture with this principle as one of the foundational layers.

A great book

A great read. Great lessons on learning from failure. So many practical examples used. He really brings the lessons to life. Highly recommended not just for business leaders but parents too.

Nice points raised but a bit long

Book raises nice points about treating the errors, and what can be achieved on the long term. But I think the same effect may be achieved with shorter storyline.

Exceptional

Brilliantly written, thoughtful, provocative, and actionable. My pick for 2022. Matthew Syed is brilliant.

Superb

Finely woven case studies, good structure for the need to understand the value of failure rather then diluting this into a cliched statement

Impressive research with Amazon storytelling

Impressive research with Amazon storytelling

I loved the way all the insights were accompanied with suspenseful stories and that the book provided evidence-based about how to analyze and move on in your own life / business life.

A must read for anyone that believes critical thinking is a must-have tool in one's life.

Repetitive and redundant

At least 6hs of the book could be cut. It only one concept with 10000000000 examples repeating that concept.

Very inspirational

This book really made me change the way I look at failure and made me feel more comfortable with it. Many of the concepts may be somewhat knows if you’ve studied business or so, but it’s brought in a very compelling way.

Simple, informative and bursting with ‘scribble th

Would you listen to Black Box Thinking again? Why?

Yes, it is one of those books you'll come back to, to remind yourself of things.

Who was your favorite character and why?

Not applicable, seriously audible, this generic form does not work. Listen to the Black Box Thinking book and then TAKE ACTION!

Have you listened to any of Simon Slater’s other performances? How does this one compare?

I've not, yet, I have just bought one though.

Did you have an emotional reaction to this book? Did it make you laugh or cry?

None of the above, don't be silly.

Any additional comments?

Stay strong during the first 9 minutes of chapter one, do, as I was, be tempted to stop listening and go back to your Archers podcast. As the campaigns says It Gets Better.

I am just starting chapter four and already this book has been worth the money / credit. Even if the rest of the book turned out to be Winnie the Pooh singing along to ABBA this book would have been worth it. Three chapters in and I’ve got a page of notes for both my professional and my personal life.

I can happily recommend this book, it’s one that I can see myself listening to repeatedly over the coming months / years. (Less than a week after buying Black Box Thinking, I’ve logged on to Audible to buy his other book Bounce.)

Never seemed to get to a point! 1/10

This was difficult listening. At the start of chapter one I was very enthusiastic about listening to this, but after getting to chapter 4 I couldn't take any more. He droned on and on and I couldn't bare to listen to another word. This is only my opinion; Some of you may love it? Just not for me!

Unnecessarily graphic

I shouldn't have to hear of the graphic details of child rape cases in order to learn about success in business. The book should come with a warning. The distressing detail I've heard far undermines the value of the rest of the content on the book. Consequently, I didn't finish it.

Insightful, entertaining and informative

Would you recommend this audiobook to a friend? If so, why?

Absolutely. It's well written, captivating, full of insight and is very persuasive. Writer clearly is passionate about his theories. Well worth reading. Thought provoking.

Who was your favorite character and why?

Not applicable

What about Simon Slater’s performance did you like?

Narrated with the right amount of enthusiasm and without monotone. Get a real sense of interest from him as it piques your own interest too.

Did you have an emotional reaction to this book? Did it make you laugh or cry?

Mainly this book made me pensive. However I do find myself using a lot of the knowledge I've gained from it as part of the way I now approach my daily life. It really has changed my outlook on things. I think it's an improvement on bounce which was itself a very interesting read.

Any additional comments?

Well worth reading more than once. Picked up many things second time round that I missed to begin with.

Must listen

I'm a careers adviser in a school in the UK looking for ways to improve my practice. Having heard the quote from this book that a psychotherapist with years of experience gets no better results than one who is newly trained, I was intrigued as I wondered if it may be the same for my profession. I got answers to this conundrum and much more besides. This is a book for anyone who wants to improve or help others to improve. It sits well alongside the likes of Gladwell, Seligman and Csikzentmahayli on issues such as the value or practice, the growth mindset and learning from mistakes. I will try to be much more careful in the future before apportioning blame on myself and others. The narrator is excellent too.

Great book with challenging counter-intuitive content

Really enjoyed listening to this book. First story made me cry a bit, gave me some significant things to think about about myself and approach. Helpful for both work and personal life.

Truly brilliant. Should be mandatory reading

Thoughtful, insightful, compelling and incredibly important, this is a real page turner of a book which kept me glued to my headphones for hours on end. If I were King of the World I would make this mandatory reading in all schools and social institutes, not just because it's a great read but because the information within should shape our future.

Great book about learning from mistakes

Lots of critical life and death real life examples. It's a very enjoyable listen and challenged my thought processes. However, I was expecting some more ideas on what approaches can be used to encourage people to learn from mistakes and how to move current thinking forward.

Great book to understand importance of mistakes

Any additional comments?

It's a great book, which helps to understand importance of making mistakes and learning from them.

very interesting and mind changing

I loved this book and the ideology it brings forth in a very clear, simple and fast flowing way. I was hesitating before I began because of some reviews stating a slow and difficult first three chapters. I did not experiance the book like that, I got suck into the story right away. I have already changed few things in my personal way of looking at things and how to respond to "failures" both my own and those of my loved ones. It will be harder to implement at my office but I will strive to do just that though.

I do also expect to listen to the whole book again this year to freshen myself up on the whole message it brings.