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The first one is the one I had when I followed the links, and you can phrase it even more concisely: Always be looking for reasons why you are wrong, not reasons why you are right.

Works for engineering, too.



I've found sometimes I can force myself into "defense" mode just by stating to myself the opposite of what I'm trying to prove.

I may tell myself "it's impossible to use product X to accomplish this" then see that as a challenge and try to prove myself wrong. But this might only work because I can be an arrogant contrarian.


It's certainly a useful technique, but for best results you should spend most of your time in a more positive space: looking for things that work and how to get them to work better, leveraging your assets, etc. etc. Asset-based thinking suggests a 4-1 ratio; I remember reading a book once that had a complex model that claimed the optimum ratio was 3-1. Your mileage may vary.


> Always be looking for reasons why you are wrong, not reasons why you are right.

Though it seems to work better for internal thought processes than in collaboration unless you are seriously tactful.




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