Black Box Thinking: Why Most People Never Learn from Their Mistakes--But Some Do

363 Pages·2015·2.88 MB·English

by  Matthew Syed

ALSO BY MATTHEW SYED
Bounce: The Myth of Talent and the Power of Practice

PORTFOLIO / PENGUIN
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First published in Great Britain by John Murray (Publishers), an imprint of Hodder and Stoughton, a
member of The Hachette UK Group ISBN 978-0-69840887-6
Version_1
For Kathy
Contents
Also by Matthew Syed
Title Page
Copyright
Dedication
Part I
THE LOGIC OF FAILURE
Chapter 1
A Routine Operation
Chapter 2
United Airlines 173
Chapter 3
The Paradox of Success
Part II
COGNITIVE DISSONANCE
Chapter 4
Wrongful Convictions
Chapter 5
Intellectual Contortions
Chapter 6
Reforming Criminal Justice
Part III
CONFRONTING COMPLEXITY
Chapter 7
The Nozzle Paradox
Chapter 8
Scared Straight?
Part IV
SMALL STEPS AND GIANT LEAPS
Chapter 9
Marginal Gains
Chapter 10
How Failure Drives Innovation
Part V
THE BLAME GAME
Chapter 11
Libyan Arab Airlines Flight 114
Chapter 12
The Second Victim
Part VI
CREATING A GROWTH CULTURE
Chapter 13
The Beckham Effect
Chapter 14
Redefining Failure
Coda: The Big Picture
Acknowledgments
Notes
Index
Part I
THE LOGIC OF FAILURE
Chapter 1
A Routine Operation
I
O
n March 29, 2005, Martin Bromiley woke up at 6:15 a.m. and made his
way to the bedrooms of his two young children, Victoria and Adam, to get
them ready for the day. It was a rainy spring morning, a few days after Easter,
and the kids were in high spirits as they sprinted downstairs for breakfast. A few
minutes later, they were joined by Elaine, their mother, who had snatched a few
extra minutes in bed.
Elaine, a vivacious thirty-seven-year-old who had worked in the travel
industry before becoming a full-time mother, had a big day ahead: she was due
in the hospital. She had been suffering from sinus problems for a couple of years
and had been advised that it would be sensible to have an operation to deal with
the issue once and for all. “Don’t worry,” the doctor had told her. “The risks are
tiny. It is a routine operation.”1
Elaine and Martin had been married for fifteen years. They met at a country
dance through a close friend, had fallen in love, and eventually moved in
together in a house in North Marston, a cozy village in the heart of rural
Buckinghamshire, thirty miles northwest of London. Victoria had arrived in
1999 and Adam two years later, in 2001.
Life was, as for many young families, hectic, but it was also tremendous fun.
They had been in an airplane for the first time as a family the previous Thursday
and had gone to a friend’s wedding on the Saturday. Elaine wanted to get her
operation out of the way so she could enjoy a few days’ break.
At 7:15 a.m., they left home. The kids chatted in the car as they made the
short journey to the hospital. Martin and Elaine were relaxed about the
operation. The ear, nose, and throat (ENT) surgeon, Dr. Edwards, had more than
thirty years of experience, and was well regarded. The anesthetist, Dr. Anderton,