I’m not gonna lie…I’m not a huge reader. As Mike Birbiglia would point out, I’m more “magazine smart” than book smart. But every now and then, I enjoy perusing the pages of a book usually on the recommendation of a select group of friends…all of whom I consider to be more intelligent than yours truly. Predictably Irrational is one of those books.
I had the opportunity to sample Predictably Irrational before its release date, which is today I might add. The book, which was written by Dr. Dan Ariely provides a refreshingly entertaining look at how we are fooled by irrational behavior, and how we can make better choices about our day-to-day decisions with simple strategies. Despite his big-ass experience (i.e. “Russell & Tate“), his approach certainly isn’t academic, but rather easy to interpret.
Chapter Three entitled “The Cost of Zero Cost” examines the way “free” items are “incredibly appealing” even though what we really want costs very little to begin with. For instance, standing in line for a couple of hours for a free meal at a new restaurant (I’m ashamed to admit that I did this when Chipotle opened its first franchise in San Antonio a few years ago), or falling victim to the buy two get one free gimmick when all you need is one. I remember while in college the credit card companies used to exploit our penchant for free t-shirts to lure students into applying for credit. These are only a few of the everyday experiences Dan Ariely discusses in the book.
I highly recommend this read. Of course, I got it for free. But that shouldn’t matter as you will find out in Predictably Irrational.
About Dan Ariely
Dr. Dan Ariely is the Alfred P. Sloan Professor of Behavorial Economics at MIT, where he holds a joint appointment between MIT’s Program in Media Arts and Sciences and the Sloan School of Management. He is also a researcher at the Boston Federal Reserve Bank and a visiting professor at Duke University. Dr. Ariely wrote Predictably Irrational while he was a fellow at the Institute for Advance Study at Princeton.