Actually Practicing Scout Mindset Makes You a Scout
It's easy to think you have scout mindset, but the real test is whether you can point to concrete cases where you changed your mind in response to evidence or applied principles consistently. The only true sign of a scout is acting like one, not merely feeling reasonable or aware of motivated reasoning.
THE IDEA
ACTUALLY PRACTICING SCOUT MINDSET MAKES YOU A SCOUT
One evening at a party, I was talking about how hard it is to have productive disagreements, in which people actually change their minds, on Twitter. A man in the group chimed in: “I don’t find it difficult at all.”
“Wow, what’s your secret?” I asked.
He shrugged. “There’s no secret. You just bring up the facts.”
My brow furrowed in confusion. “And that . . . works? You bring up facts, and people change their minds?”
“Yeah, all the time,” he said.
The next day, I perused his Twitter feed to figure out what I was missing. I read through months of tweets, but I couldn’t find a single instance that matched the description he’d given me at the party. Whenever someone disagreed with something he said in a tweet, he either ignored them, mocked them, or simply informed them that they were wrong and considered the discussion closed.
It’s easy to think, “Of course I change my mind in response to evidence,” or “Of course I apply my principles consistently,” or “Of course I’m fair-minded,” whether or not those things are true. The test of scout mindset isn’t whether you see yourself as the kind of person who does these things. It’s whether you can point to concrete cases in which you did, in fact, do these things.
Feeling reasonable, being smart and knowledgeable, being aware of motivated reasoning—all these things seem like they should be indicators of scout mindset, yet they have surprisingly little to do with it. The only real sign of a scout is whether you act like one. In the rest of this chapter, we’ll explore five signs of scout mindset, behavioral cues that someone cares about truth and will seek it out even when they’re not forced to, and even when the truth isn’t favorable to them.
When to use it
When engaging in political or ideological debates, ask yourself whether you are actually seeking evidence that could change your mind or just defending your position.
In a team decision-making meeting, instead of assuming you are open to feedback, proactively ask for counterarguments and track if you adjust your stance.
When evaluating your own performance or skill, look for concrete examples of learning from mistakes rather than relying on a general self-image of being reasonable.
Use the party anecdote as a cautionary tale when reviewing your own social media interactions: check if you are genuinely engaging with opposing views or just dismissing them.
FROM THEORY TO EVERYDAY LIFE
In practice
Party Anecdote: The Man Who Thought He Changed Minds
A man at a party claimed he easily changed people's minds by bringing up facts. However, when his Twitter feed was examined, he never actually engaged productively with disagreements; instead, he ignored, mocked, or dismissed opposing views. His behavior differed from his perception of himself as open-minded.
Self-Assessment Trap
A person might think 'Of course I'm fair-minded' or 'Of course I change my mind in response to evidence,' but when asked for a specific concrete example, they cannot provide one. This shows the danger of equating feeling reasonable with being a scout.
A MOMENT TO REFLECT
Put it to work.
Can you recall a specific instance in the past month when you changed your mind on a significant issue because of new evidence or a compelling argument?
How do you distinguish between feeling like you are open-minded and actually demonstrating open-minded behavior in a disagreement?
What behavioral cues could you look for in yourself to tell if you are truly acting as a scout, rather than just believing you are one?
CONTINUE THE CONVERSATION
Source texts
- The Scout Mindset (Julia Galef)