Thinking, fast and slow by Daniel Kahneman

Whilst Predictably Irrational is a fast and uncomplicated read, Kahneman’s work is weighty and dense running to over 400 pages of magnificently distilled ideas.  But this by no means suggests it is inferior, in fact quite the reverse.

This amazing man won the Nobel Prize for Economics in 2002 for his work with Amos Tversky on ‘Prospect Theory’, the original paper being included in the appendix. And what a paper it is. I always like a good picture and their model for illustrating the theory has the paradoxical ability to be breathtakingly simple and incredibly complex.

This book builds on that original theory and goes into the world of memory and experiences and how brilliant and flawed human judgement is. And it is his wonderful humility that helps one persevere through the dense, empirically supported evidence illustrating how we act in the way we do.

It is no surprise then that Kahneman’s work is the most cited in the world of Behavioural economics. I needed a breather after every 10 or so pages but the value in my work has been immeasurable. Anyone involved in strategy or planning must read this.

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