Powerful ideas from top nonfiction
Try Blinkist to get the key ideas from 7,000+ bestselling nonfiction titles and podcasts. Listen or read in just 15 minutes.
Start your free trial
Blink 3 of 8 - The 5 AM Club
by Robin Sharma
Listen to the Intro
Think Like a Freak summary
Steven D. Levitt and Stephen J. Dubner
Find the unconvential yet brilliant ideas hidden in data
21 mins
Topics
Table of Contents
Think Like a Freak
Summary of 10 key ideas
Audio & text in the Blinkist app
Key idea 1 of 10
Thinking like a freak means violating conventions; it might win you the World Cup but won’t necessarily make you popular.
When we try to solve problems, most of us are guided by conventional beliefs. However, there’s a problem with conventional beliefs: they’re often wrong.
Take, for example, the “local food” movement. Most people believe that consuming local food reduces environmental impact.
However, a recent study found that this movement was actually counterproductive because the small farms it supports consume more energy for production, outweighing any positive effects of reduced transportation.
This is exactly what thinking like a freak is about: basing one's beliefs and decisions on statistical evidence, rather than conventional wisdom.
But how can this be of use in everyday life? Well, for one thing, thinking like a freak can help you to solve problems.
For example, imagine you’re a soccer player about to make a penalty kick which could win your team the World Cup.
How can you increase your chances of scoring? If you’re right-footed, as most players are, aiming towards the left will result in a stronger, more accurate kick. Goalkeepers are aware of this strategy, so 57 percent of the time they’ll jump to the kicker’s left side, and 41 percent to the right.
Interestingly, however, keepers remain in the goal’s center only two percent of the time, so a kick “straight up the middle” is seven percent more likely to be successful than a kick to either corner.
But while thinking like a freak has many advantages, it might also put your popularity at risk.
For example, only 17 percent of all penalties in professional soccer are aimed towards the center.
Why?
Because it’s such an obvious violation of the conventions. Also, if the goalkeeper remains in the center and catches the ball with zero effort, the penalty-taker might well lose the faith of his fans.
Or, for example, imagine how popular you’ll be when you tell a “locavore” friend that the local-food movement actually hurts the environment!
Want to see all full key ideas from Think Like a Freak?
Key ideas in Think Like a Freak
More knowledge in less time
Read or listen
Get the key ideas from nonfiction bestsellers in minutes, not hours.
Find your next read
Get book lists curated by experts and personalized recommendations.
Shortcasts New
We’ve teamed up with podcast creators to bring you key insights from podcasts.
What is Think Like a Freak about?
Think Like A Freak is a blueprint for thinking unconventionally and creatively. It demonstrates the benefits of letting go of conventional wisdoms, and teaches you to dig deeper to find out how things really work. By learning to think like a "freak", you’ll gain access to an entirely new way of solving problems and making sense of the world.
Best quote from Think Like a Freak
Sometimes in life, going straight up the middle is the boldest move of all.
—Steven D. Levitt and Stephen J. Dubner
Who should read Think Like a Freak?
- Anyone who likes to challenge conventional beliefs
- Anyone interested in how statistics can help solve problems
- Anyone who wants to learn how to think more creatively and unconventionally
Categories with Think Like a Freak
Books like Think Like a Freak
People ❤️ Blinkist
Sven O.
It's highly addictive to get core insights on personally relevant topics without repetition or triviality. Added to that the apps ability to suggest kindred interests opens up a foundation of knowledge.
Thi Viet Quynh N.
Great app. Good selection of book summaries you can read or listen to while commuting. Instead of scrolling through your social media news feed, this is a much better way to spend your spare time in my opinion.
Jonathan A.
Life changing. The concept of being able to grasp a book's main point in such a short time truly opens multiple opportunities to grow every area of your life at a faster rate.
Renee D.
Great app. Addicting. Perfect for wait times, morning coffee, evening before bed. Extremely well written, thorough, easy to use.
People also liked
Start growing with Blinkist now
28 Million
Downloads on all platforms
4.7 Stars
Average ratings on iOS and Google Play
91%
Of Blinkist members create a better reading habit*
*Based on survey data from Blinkist customers