Strangers

Talking to Strangers, by Malcolm Gladwell, is full of great insights, about how we default to believing that people tell the truth, and regularly misread the intentions, emotions and behaviours of strangers. I regard Gladwell as a systems thinker, although he probably wouldn’t characterise himself that way. The starting point in much of his writing is: it’s not that simple; the situation is not as obvious as it looks. In other words, it’s complex. Put another way: context really matters. Notably, place and time strongly influence outcomes, whether it’s suicides, police actions, judge decisions, alcohol abuse or romantic encounters.

— Wayne Visser

From Purpose Inspired: Reflections on Conscious Living, Volume 4. Buy on Lulu ↗