The Rules of Thinking

Richard Templar is the international bestselling author of The Rules series, known for turning everyday insights into simple, actionable principles. With his calm and clear style, Templar makes complex ideas about thinking and personal development easy to understand and apply. He translates his observations into guiding principles that help readers think smarter, wiser and happier.

• Think for yourself  1 Avoid echo chambers  2 Don’t be scared  3 Consider the motive  4 Beware self-interest  5 Keep hold of your heartstrings  6 Don’t be gullible  Resilient thinking  7 Know who you are  8 Seek out support  9 Take control  10 Be flexible  11 Be self-aware  12 It is what it is  13 Don’t get over-distracted  14 Like yourself  15 Be ready to cope  16 Better out than in  17 Cut yourself some slack  Healthy thinking  18 Think yourself happy  19 Focus on other people  20 Be in the present  21 Stress is optional  22 Normality isn’t normal  23 Evaluate your emotions  24 Laugh at yourself  25 Keep learning  26 No one likes to be incompetent  27 Practice makes progress  28 Turn off the action replays  29 Sidestep bad habits  30 Appreciate semantics  31 Keep the bar steady  32 Look for the spin  Organised thinking  33 Believe in being organised  34 Learn to love a list  35 Think outside your head  36 Don’t overload your RAM  37 Make deadlines your friend  38 Don’t indulge in decision-making  39 Get creatively organised  Thinking creatively  40 Train your brain  41 Feed your mind  42 Get in the mood  43 Open up  44 There are no rules  45 Spot the box  46 Think like someone else  47 Make connections  48 Make mistakes  49 Forget about other people  Problem solving  50 Clear your emotions out of the way  51 Make sure there’s really a problem  52 Check you’re solving the right problem  53 Loosen up  54 Don’t settle for your first answer  55 If it’s plausible, it’s worthwhile  56 Find a way in  57 Don’t get bogged down  58 Try a new angle  59 Don’t panic  60 Get help  Thinking together  61 You’re better together  62 Play to everyone’s strengths  63 Think like a hive  64 Leave your ego behind  65 Keep an eye on the quiet ones  66 Question groupthink  67 Conflict is OK  68 Think up a storm  69 Have stupid ideas  70 Keep in synch  Making decisions  71 Decide what you’re deciding  72 Don’t start at square two  73 Set yourself boundaries  74 Untangle the knots first  75 Go for Goldilocks  76 Vet your advisors  77 Be your own advisor  78 Don’t jump to conclusions  79 Understand your emotions  80 Balance logic and emotion  81 Learn to compromise  82 Find option C  83 Assess the cost of a bad decision  84 Regret is a waste of energy  85 Be honest about procrastinating  Critical thinking  86 Read John Donne  87 Don’t be played for a fool  88 Stand back and take in the view  89 Look for what comes next  90 Don’t bother your pretty little head  91 Consider the odds  92 Facts are neutral  93 Don’t trust statistics  94 Understand cause and effect  95 If you can’t prove it’s true, that doesn’t mean it isn’t  96 Don’t believe it just because everyone else does  97 Don’t believe it just because you want to  98 Be devil’s advocate  99 Don’t go into lockdown  100 Opinions aren’t facts  The Rules of Calm  1 Get a sense of perspective 2 Visualise the best-case scenario  3 Look back on yourself  4 Catch yourself catastrophising  5 Don’t flap  6 Have a Plan B  7 Mind your vocab  8 Choose your friends carefully 9 Be your own friend  10 Stop fighting  Had Enough Yet. . . ?  It’s not all about you  Get them emotionally involved No one has to be like you