Behavioural Economics Saved My Dog
By Dan Ariely
I am obsessed with books written by Dan Ariely, and this one is no exception.
Let’s go and see some of the #Tidbits of the book, and hopefully, they give you deeper understandings on your (irrational) behaviors…
ON WEDDING RING WOES (P. 19)
“… but having to overcome your aversion to shopping for something you don’t want is a much stronger signal of your love and care”
Something nice, yet helpful to remind yourself next time you go shopping with your partner…
ON HIRING A GOOD (AND FREE) ADVISER (P. 29)
If you’re trying to make rational decisions,
“… consider what advice we would give to our best friend if they were in the same situation”
so that we can be a bit more objective and less biased.
ON TOASTS AND THE IDEAL SUPERSTITION (P. 52)
Why can’t we just stop believing in superstitions, even though we know they are complete nonsense? Because…
“It’s certainly not worth risking such a large consequence for such a small, fun act.”
Well, maybe rather than trying too hard to be “rational” by trying to forget superstitions, and becoming anxious about the consequences it might bring, it’s better to believe in them in order to live a tranquil life, after all.
ON PICKUP LINES AND COMPLIMENTS (P. 54)
“… compliments are free, they make the person giving them happier, they make the person getting them feel special, and they strengthen the bond between the two”
More compliments and less complains, and the world will be a happier place.
ON FLASHY CARS (P. 59)
The author explains what signaling is ;
“… we humans are concerned with the signals we send to those around us about who we are. Signalling is part of reason why we buy large homes, dress up in designer clothes, and buy certain cars.”
Sometimes, I don’t even know I like something because I truly enjoy it myself, or because I like the image of myself doing it (signalling). As a matter of fact, I sometimes doubt the existence of free will because of this idea. I don’t feel like my emotions are purely spontaneous, therefore, my free will can only exercise its will by reflecting on other people’s presence, which makes my free will no longer free, but rather, dependent on others.
(By the way, I shared this thought in my past blog post How Much of Me is actually “Me”?, to read it ; click here)
ON LEARNING TO BE BETTER DECISION MAKERS (MAYBE) (P. 80)
Here the author talks about the importance of habits.
“Habits are automated ways of acting without thinking very much, which means that to the extent that we create good habits, they can facilitate better behaviours.”
ON GIVING (P. 102)
“… giving money away leads to higher levels of happiness than spending it on ourselves”
It is true that when I go shopping for myself, I often end up regretting buying too much, feeling like I’ve wasted both my time and money. (Of course while I’m shopping, I don’t realize this… it’s always after shopping, too late.) But if I’m doing it for others, like when I’m buying gifts for my friends, I don’t feel this way. On the contrary, I feel happy just to imagine my friend’s face when they receive my gifts.
Lessons from this? Next time I feel the urge to go on shopping spree, I’ll go for buying gifts for others.
There are so many other parts of the book I’d like to share, but I’ll let you discover yourself. It’s such a hilarious book that you can just pick it up whenever you want and read it.
Thank you again the author, Dan Ariely, for this amazing book!
ABOUT THIS BOOK
AUTHOR Dan Ariely [His website]
CARTOONS by Willian Haefeli
COVER designed by Nathan Burton [His website]
OTHER BOOKS by Dan Ariely
- Predictably Irrational (I made another #Tidbits post on this book : click here)
- The Upside of Irrationality
- The Honest Truth About Dishonesty
Ceaseless mind 