We need people who understand how we think

It was my birthday last week, and with each year that passes I feel a stronger sense of perspective about my life. Not just where I am now, but the greater picture of where I've been and the people who've been there along the way.

Over time, you begin to notice something about the people who cross your path. There are people who will make you doubt yourself, and there are others who help you see your thinking as something worth trusting.

Throughout my career I've met some remarkable individuals who noticed the way I looked at problems. Often my solutions didn't arrive fully formed or easy to explain. But they gave me the space to explore, to follow where the thinking led, and occasionally to make mistakes or fail before eventually getting it right.

Looking back now, I realize how rare that kind of trust can be.

When I think about my kids and imagine the paths their lives may take, I find myself hoping they encounter people like that too - people who make the effort to understand how they think rather than expecting them to simply fit in. Because much of the world encourages us to believe that if our thinking doesn't fit a particular norm, something about us must be wrong.

Over time I've come to understand cognition very differently. Different modes of thinking are not flaws that need correcting - they are cognitive gifts that simply require the right conditions to flourish.

What I can see clearly now is that the work of my life is to change how we understand cognition. And to offer others the same belief in their thinking that I was fortunate enough to receive along the way.

Gregor