Dan Ariely Says Defying Logic Can be Good

It’s not often that the writing of a behavioral economist is thought-provoking and easy to read at the same time. But if you pick up Dan Ariely’s new book, The Upside of Irrationality: The Unexpected Benefits of Defying Logic at Work and at Home, you’ll find it’s like having a conversation with an old friend, a very wise old friend.

Ariely’s self-depreciating humor and enthusiasm for human eccentricities will help you identify ways to improve how you love, work, innovate and manage.

Some of the questions he answers:

• Why large bonuses can make executives less productive.
• How confusing directions can actually help us.
• Why revenge sometimes seems so important.
• Why there is such a big difference between what we think will make us happy and what really makes us happy.

Ariely also uses some of the research presented in his first book, Predictably Irrational, one of the most popular books on a previous best seller list. It deals with biases and unwise decisions.

Through fascinating anecdotes, he shows the negative and positive effects irrationality can have. He focuses on what we do at work and in relationships, what really motivates us, and how unwise actions can become habits.

The author says this is a highly personal book. In the second part, he draws partly on his difficult experiences as a burn patient. While he includes plenty of research, his reflections make for a well-balanced read, whether you read it cover-to cover or one part at a time.

If you are interested in prescriptions about how to defy logic and improve how you love the one you’re with, or how to improve at work, Ariely has some advice for you.

Related posts: