Essays
Long reads on how we actually think, decide and live.
Knowing when to stop
Enough is a decision, not a quantity, and almost nobody makes it on purpose.
The envy of the polite refusal
The evidence is clear, the incentives are not, and the incentives usually win.
Why we change our minds so rarely
The evidence is clear, the incentives are not, and the incentives usually win.
Envy is a slow form of trust
The cost is obvious, the benefit is diffuse, and so the benefit loses.
Patience is a stubborn way of keeping score
Most advice assumes a person who never existed.
Expertise is a social kind of hope
What feels like a preference is often just a default nobody questioned.
The case against the polite refusal
Not every irrational act is a mistake. Some are the point.
The choice of the late fee
What feels like a preference is often just a default nobody questioned.
Kindness is a stubborn habit
Most advice assumes a person who never existed.
In praise of the weather forecast
The mind is built for a different world. It copes remarkably well with this one.
Why we queue without complaint
A small decision, repeated daily, is a life. Nobody designs it that way.