The Benefits of Meta-Knowledge

There's growing evidence that the ability to reflect on and think about ourselves might share neural and cognitive machinery with the capacity to think about other minds. So what psychologists refer to as theory of mind. When you want to engage in a nuanced two-person interaction when you're collaborating with someone, for instance, you want to be appropriately sensitive to what you bring to the table. The effective people are the ones who can kind of go with their own view when they think it's the right thing to do or defer to others at work.