Is it possible to see the world objectively, to understand events as another does, to truly empathise, and to step outside of ourselves?

We are blinded by our bias; our upbringings, religions, parents, education, gender, age and ethnicity.

These things will dictate what we believe, and how we interoperate new information, and thus how we perceive and act upon the world.

Teachers and parents often push the importance of reading. But what they often fail to do is explain why it is so important.

In this episode, Zachary discusses how widely reading (particularly of fiction and autobiographies) increases detachment and allows you to live someone else's life.

"When the characters in our books face moral dilemmas, overcome obstacles, learn and grow, so does the reader. I will never be able to see the world through your eyes, but if I read your book, I would have a greater ability to empathise with your perspective"

Zachary discusses the cognitive bias of illusory superiority (our tendency to believe we are better then what we are) as well as how to over come it.