Sherlock Holmes, the Mindful Detective
Sherlock Holmes, the Mindful Detective
Today marks the official US release of my new book, Mastermind: How to Think Like Sherlock Holmes. It all began here, on “Literally Psyched,” with a handful of posts that I called “Lessons from Sherlock Holmes.” To celebrate the occasion, I am re-posting my first ever Holmesian blog, from back in the summer of 2011. The original was titled “Don’t Just See, Observe: What Sherlock Holmes Can Teach Us About Mindful Decisions,” and appeared on August 19, 2011. But before I get down to Holmes, allow me to take a minute to thank my editor at SciAm, Bora Zivkovic, and the amazing community at Scientific American and the Scientific American blog network. I feel incredibly lucky to have had their support. This day would not be possible without them all.
And now, without further ado, some lessons from that greatest of all detectives, Mr. Sherlock Holmes.
Don’t Just See; Observe
Sherlock Holmes isn’t what you’d call a traditional psychologist. In fact, he isn’t even real (despite the letters that to this day arrive at 221B Baker Street). But his insights into the human mind do more to teach us about how we do think and how we should think than many a more conventional source. I, for one, would be happy to take a few pages from the playbook of Arthur Conan Doyle’s creation any day.
Sherlock Holmes teaches us to be constantly mindful of our surroundings
When I was little, my dad used to read us Sherlock Holmes stories before bed. While my brother often took the opportunity to fall promptly asleep on his corner of the couch, the rest of us listened intently. I remember in particular one story that has stayed with me. Not the whole story, actually, but one exchange that caught my attention.