Essays
Long reads on how we actually think, decide and live.
Why good people make bad decisions
Hypocrisy is the wrong diagnosis. The ordinary mind is simply built for a different world.
The risk of small talk
Not every irrational act is a mistake. Some are the point.
The case against small talk
The evidence is clear, the incentives are not, and the incentives usually win.
The case against the round number
What feels like a preference is often just a default nobody questioned.
The loyalty of the school run
What feels like a preference is often just a default nobody questioned.
Generosity is a public act of faith
Most advice assumes a person who never existed.
Why we buy insurance for the wrong things
Before we try to fix people, it is worth understanding what they are for.
What the group chat teaches us about generosity
The story we tell afterwards is tidier than the choice we made at the time.
In praise of the late fee
The cost is obvious, the benefit is diffuse, and so the benefit loses.
The case against the polite refusal
Not every irrational act is a mistake. Some are the point.
What the slow lane teaches us about loyalty
A small decision, repeated daily, is a life. Nobody designs it that way.
A short history of the second helping
What feels like a preference is often just a default nobody questioned.