Think Like Sherlock: Creatively Solve Problems, Think with Clarity, Make Insightful Observations & Deductions, and Develop Quick & Accurate Instincts

by Peter Hollins

Instantly have flashes of genius, solve mysteries, read people's minds, and size up situations. Well, sort of ...
Sherlock Holmes, famous detective of 221 Baker Street, is one of literature's most beloved figures. Why? Because he is able to unravel a complex story from simple observation, perception, creative thinking, and problem-solving.

No book can make you Sherlock. But this book can teach you his most practical tactics and introduce you to the building blocks of what it takes to be a famous detective.
Sharpen your judgment and instincts for better decisions.

Think Like Sherlock is as close as you'll get to thinking like a sleuth. There are references and case studies sprinkled throughout to illustrate just how you can improve your thinking habits to not only solve the mysteries in your life, but approach life with analysis, care, and creativity.

You'll find a plethora of techniques and illustrative examples. No other book provides you with such a clear blueprint of the skills you need to think with clarity and understand what really matters.
Learn everyday deductive reasoning to decipher the events in your life.
Peter Hollins has studied psychology and peak human performance for over a dozen years and is a bestselling author. He has worked with a multitude of individuals to unlock their potential and path towards success. His writing draws on his academic, coaching, and research experience.
Techniques from a wide range of disciplines to solve problems.
-How to shift your perspective and open up a new world of thought.
- The process of observation and deduction, and how to works on an everyday basis.
-How altered states of consciousness contribute to clear thinking and how Einstein and Salvador Dali took advantage of this.
How to systematically and consistently think outside the box.
-Critical thinking and why you shouldn't take things or people at face value.
- How to invert, reverse, substitute, adapt, magnify, minimize, lateral, and distance (and more...) your thinking for flashes of genius.
-Learn how to use reverse brainstorming and the Fishbone technique to solve the 'crimes' in your life.
Sherlock sees the world for what it is, underneath the mask and facade - and so can you.

This book gives you a pair of glasses to finally view the world accurately and clearly. Imagine what you could do with this simple superpower. You can apply this to analyzing and reading people and situations to understand what is really happening. You can draw conclusions based on little to no information. You can become as creative as you are required to be to solve the problems in front of you. Let your newly-improved instincts lead the way.

Genres: Self Help

230 pages, Paperback

First published July 31, 2018

About the author

Peter Hollins is a bestselling author, human psychology researcher, and a student of the human condition. He possesses a BS in psychology and a graduate degree.

Reviews

[Sameera Nanayakkara · Rating 5 out of 5]

Think Like Sherlock: Creatively Solve Problems, Think with Clarity, Make Insightful Observations & Deductions, and Develop Quick & Accurate InstinctsPeter Hollins

I must first confess that I am indeed a huge fan of Sherlock Holmes, in all forms - print, television or theatre. It is not merely because of the charismatic crime solving heroism of Sherlock that I adore the character, but because I am humbled by the fact that he is actually a pigment of imagination of a once living and breathing human being just like us, Sir Arthur Conan Doyle. Just like a marvelous computer programme written by a software engineer that astonishes its users, Sherlock's heroics continue to fascinate readers and fans over the generations.

"Sir Arthur Conan Doyle created the British detective in 1887 in the story A Study in Scarlet. Doyle used the character of Holmes in a total of 60 adventures (four novels and 56 short stories). He was immediately popular and remains so to this day. Holmes has been portrayed in film and on television over 250 times, more than any other human literary character in history."

Likewise, I am a big fan of Peter Hollins' books. His easily digestible, small booklets are well written and well researched. Reading one of his books is like reading a multitude of related books with just a fraction of the effort. The well tabulated and well explained content of his books is pleasing to the reader because of its soothing flow. Peter is liberal with examples and never looks for short cuts when trying to explain something. At the end of his books, readers are filled with valuable facts and enlightenment with hardly any exhaustion.

In this book Peter takes the reader on a journey to effectively gather information, come to decisions and carry them out efficiently, taking Sherlock Holmes as a role model.

"He explains the solutions so articulately and plainly that it makes those watching him feel almost stupid for not noticing the clues in the first place."

Though most of the facts in the book feel familiar and already learnt, I was pleasantly surprised more than once to learn something new and to realize that I had failed to look at a certain thing in that prospect. To be honest I believe most of the basic and practically applicable knowledge on any subject is already known and whatever information that comes up new is in the extreme of that specialty that has no concern for us unless you wish to be an ultra-expert on that subject. Hollins does a great job in organizing this available knowledge on a palatable and nicely presented plate.

"How often have I said to you that when you have eliminated the impossible, whatever remains, however improbable, must be the truth."

The main focus of this book is to teach you to think outside the box and to pay attention to the abundant information in our surroundings so that ultimately, we can make smart decisions just like Sherlock.

"Often the failure to come up with a solution to the problem doesn’t arise out of lack of knowledge or a deficit in logical thinking skills.   Rather, it is born of a failure to simply look past self-imposed walls or even recognize that there are walls blocking your view to an obvious solution."

Hollins has made use of many research publications as well as several worthy books including 'Left of Bang', 'The Thinker’s Toolkit: 14 Powerful Techniques for Problem Solving' and 'Strategies for Creative Problem Solving.' Unlike some personal development writers, Hollins had not made any attempt to portray the narrative as solely his brainchild. He has gathered the facts and has presented them in a praiseworthy manner.

Trying to solve a problem, especially when you’ve been grappling with it for a considerable amount of time already, is bound to be exhausting and emotionally draining. You may start to feel stressed, frustrated, or at times overly excited, especially when you’re personally invested in the outcome. When this happens, chances are you won’t be able to think as clearly or creatively as you can. This is where the necessity of creating psychological distance comes in."

I personally can relate well to 'Psychological distancing' because as a doctor I might treat hundreds of patients or operate on them with the least humane possible attachment. But when it comes to illness in the family my brain runs haywire, all worst possible diagnoses bombard my mind and rational thinking is nearly impossible unless I force my mind to detach the emotional bond for a short while. That must be why most often no matter how good a doctor is he will always ask a colleague to attend to the medical needs of his family members.

With that personal note, allow me to sign off, saying this, no matter whether you are a Sherlock fan or not (hard to believe one can NOT be a Sherlock fan) - "Read this book, it is worth the couple of hours, and you will find new insights into fine tuning your thinking brain to analyze the facts and come up with logical deductions and inferences."

"Correlation does not necessarily mean causation—that is, two variables often occurring together does not necessarily mean that one variable actually causes the other."

[Amber · Rating 5 out of 5]

loved it

[Stephen Bacon · Rating 1 out of 5]

By a country mile, the most boring book I've ever stumbled across. The title is wholly misleading - there is nothing at all within this book to tie it to Sherlock Holmes. In fact so desperate is its attempt to garner readers with such a tenuous link to Conan Doyle's famous detective, I would deduct a star if I could. But I can't.
Don't waste your time with such drivel. Even if you're looking for a business read or self-improvement guide, you'll do better elsewhere.

[Γιώργος Δάμτσιος · Rating 3 out of 5]

Γενικά δεν με ενθουσιάζουν αυτά τα βιβλία. Όμως έπεσε τυχαία στα χέρια μου (μαζί με άλλα τρία παρόμοια) και έτσι το διάβασα. Οπότε ξεκάθαρα δεν είμαι ο κατάλληλος να πω πολλά για αυτό. Προφανώς πάντως το συγκεκριμένο είδος έχει το δικό του κοινό...

[Anya · Rating 4 out of 5]

Isinya ringan, singkat dan padat. Ada byk latian dan insight buat nyeleseiin masalah sehari-hari😁

[Roy Murry · Rating 5 out of 5]

Think Like Sherlock
Peter Hollins

Reviewed by Roy Murry, Author

“Education never ends, Watson. It is a series of lessons, with the greatest for the last.”
― Arthur Conan Doyle, His Last Bow

Hollins' book of how to think correctly is full of educational information a young person should read and delve in. I was lucky enough to be trained by the best (Special Forces) at JFK Psychological Warfare Center in 1968 as my first education after High School, so some of the principles he writes about I knew.

However, as Sherlock might say, we learn something every day. How we use that lesson is crucial. Hollins gives the reader much to mull over in a short space of time. You may want to re-read some ideas and put them to work.

Some are: how to critically think; working concepts of Pablo Picasso, Einstein, Henry Ford, and Holms, of course; Observations and Deductive Reasoning; Thinking Outside the Box; and much more.

Peter Hollins writing is clear and concise. You will read, stop and think about how you can use the principle in your world. It is not a technical read but one you will enjoy learning as you read.

I'll keep Think Like Sherlock in my Kindle as I have Conan Doyle's Holms shorts and novels; as you should too.

[Hannah · Rating 3 out of 5]

I’m sure this is a very helpful book for people who are looking for this sort of thing, but I feel misled. I picked up this book thinking it would give me insight into how Holmes makes his famous deductions by telling me how to spot a liar and showing me how to gather information from footprints. It definitely did not. While a lot of the information was useful, it wasn’t what I was looking for. Favorite quote: “Boil that pasta and don’t look back.”

[Shreyas · Rating 5 out of 5]

Gonna Keep it short!

Definitely a 5-star book for me. Why?
The reason being:

- It discusses 4 aspects of Sherlock's personality: (Outside the box thinking, Observations and Deductive Reasoning, Perspective, and Critical thinking.)
- Each aspect is considered a chapter, providing every practical technique you could utilize in your own life to improve the efficiency and practicality of your ideas, plans, and their implementation.
- It was 100 pages (ebook) and as I took notes, I think I came across more than 15 techniques to include Sherlock's way of thinking in my life.

SPOILER AHEAD !!!

A quick overview of techniques that I found useful and gonna include in my workflow:
Technique
1. SCAMPER Method
2. Osborn-Parnes Model
3. Intentional Constraints
4. Six-work memoirs
5. Switch Between Tasks
6. Reverse Story Telling
7. Redefining and rephrasing problems
8. Taking an entirely different viewpoint
9. Lateral thinking
10. Six hats method
11. Asking "why" many times in a row
12. The astronaut method
and many more

Each technique has practical steps to apply that in our lives, you'll have to read the book for that.

[Andy · Rating 4 out of 5]

Think Like Sherlock

Good book with a new list of ideas to get you thinking. I have taken notes and plan on implementing some of the techniques. I think some of the examples on how to effectively utilize the techniques could be better worked. It is a quick read and provides good ideas. I do recommend it.

[Fay · Rating 3 out of 5]

Το συγκεκριμένο βιβλίο πρόκειται για ένα από εκείνα που κέρδισα κατά καιρούς σε διαγωνισμούς. Κάπως έτσι βρέθηκε και στα χέρια μου!
Όσο γίνεται αναφορά στον ίδιο τον Σέρλοκ Χολμς και στον τρόπο που αυτός σκέφτεται και λειτουργεί, μου άρεσε και το βρήκα αρκετά ενδιαφέρον. Στα υπόλοιπα σημεία ένιωσα να διαβάζω ένα ακόμα βιβλίο αυτοβελτίωσης...

[Wade Sarver · Rating 4 out of 5]

Critical thinking guidelines

This book references Sherlock Holmes in the way he thinks. It’s really about different ways to approach problems than solving mysteries.
Good tips but the Sherlock reference is fleeting.

[Helfren · Rating 4 out of 5]

Read this book and the use of SCAMPERs as well as reverse engineering a problem coupled with the way doctor's diagnosis happens, really amps up the normal way of thinking closer to Sherlock-like capability.

[Nisar · Rating 3 out of 5]

Good work....

It says lot of ways to tackle the problem that may arise with examples, not sure how i am going to use it, but it was very interesting and explained very well with examples..

Waiting for the next problem to come, to wear the Sherlock Holmes hat :)

[Jahangeer · Rating 5 out of 5]

Excellent Book, must read

I have gained a lot by reading this book and will surely try to train myself on various aspects discussed in this book.
Thank you Peter!

[Joseph Sams · Rating 5 out of 5]

Good Read

Very insightful with suggesting tips on how to solve life's everyday problems. I would recommend to those who struggle with decision making.

[Phuong-Anh Ly · Rating 3 out of 5]

Nothing's new but the book is a good reminder of what I've read somewhere.

[Subjuntivo Subjuntivo · Rating 1 out of 5]

A title that sounds like something, with no content.
Boy would Sherlock kick some ass if he ever came to life and saw this sucker using his name to make a quick buck...

[hielianthos · Rating 5 out of 5]

A concise and comprehensive roundup and exploration of often conflicting philosophies to achieve the ultimate goal of thinking like Sherlock.

[Michael Milawski · Rating 5 out of 5]

Interesting insights which can be applied in any parts of life.
No blown up content, book has about 110 pages.

[Chinchilla_clouds · Rating 2 out of 5]

Συμπαθητική προσπάθεια, αλλά ίσως να ενδιέφερε κάποιον που ασχολείται με τον τομέα των επιχειρήσεων περισσότερο απο εμένα, ως μια μικρή εισαγωγή στην καλύτερη διαχείριση και λύση προβλημάτων μέσα σε αυτές.

[Nisa · Rating 3 out of 5]

Bagus,, cara menjabarkan metode pemecahan untuk tiap masalahnya detail, tapi perasaan bingung, gapaham, dan pusing pas lg ngebaca buku ini ngebekas bgt di aku haha.

[Celia Whitfield]

Great book.

Easy and fun reading! Definitely a page turner. After reading, I was more aware of everything around me and wanted to experiment with solving problems using each problem solving technique.