Shortform Books

Gut Decisions: 4 Tips for Making Better Choices

Why do they say “trust your gut”? How do you know when your gut is right? Gut decisions can be advantageous in some circumstances, but they can lead you astray in others. Malcolm Gladwell suggests that you can make better instinctive decisions by providing the unconscious mind with structure. This involves rehearsing your desired spontaneous responses and developing rules that you can fall back on in times of stress. Here’s how you can “train your gut” to make better decisions, according to Gladwell.

The Mere Exposure Effect: Why We Like Familiarity

What is the mere exposure effect? Why do we like things that are familiar and dislike what’s unfamiliar? The mere exposure effect occurs when we start to like things just because we’ve been exposed to them before. It applies to everything from the people we interact with to that song that keeps playing on the radio. Here’s why we like the familiar and try to stay from the unfamiliar.

Mythology Paintings: Self-Serving Snobbery?

What is mythological art? Why did mythology use to be accessible only to the rich? Access to mythology used to be a prerogative of the wealthy elites. According to art critic John Berger, works of art that depicted elements of mythology were the elites’ way of affirming their high status because they were educated enough to know the stories being told. Keep reading to learn Berger’s view of mythology paintings in the European tradition.

Elon Musk’s Early Life: From Childhood to College

What was Elon Musk’s early life like? Where was Elon Musk born and raised? Elon Musk’s early life was difficult in that he felt like an outsider growing up in South Africa. He also was bullied and struggled with the divorce of his parents. On the bright side, he grew up with the freedom and resources to explore his interests and was eventually able to move to Canada to attend college. Keep reading to learn more about Elon Musk’s early life.

The 2 Bad Comparisons You Need to Stop Making

Why do people tend to make such bad comparisons in life? How can those bad comparisons affect your future? Humans don’t have a great track record for making good choices and comparisons. This is especially prevalent when we make comparisons to the past and present when making big decisions for the future. Learn why your bad comparisons may be making you unhappy.

The Rise of the Free-Market Economic System

What is the origin of the free market economy? Why do we place so much faith in markets? In his book What Money Can’t Buy, Michael Sandel traces the origins of the free-market economic system back to the 1980s. According to Sandel, we put so much faith in markets because we believe it’s the optimal way to distribute limited resources. Keep reading to learn about the rise of the free market.

Buying a House Below Market Value Is Smart Investing

What are the benefits of buying a house below market value? How does it affect your real estate investment plan? If you’re using David M. Greene’s BRRRR method from his book Buy, Rehab, Rent, Refinance, Repeat, then you need to start by buying a house below market value. The BRRRR method emphasizes buying cheap properties because you can easily recover your investment later when selling the home. Let’s look at how buying a house below market value can make you more money, and how to find a good deal out of it.

A Guide to Finding Your Target Audience in Marketing

Are you trying to find your target audience in marketing? How do you choose the demographic that fits you the best? In their book Playing to Win, former CEO A.G. Lafley and consultant Roger Martin explain that there are five questions you should ask yourself when choosing your target market. They also share the most common pitfalls and advice on how to avoid them. Here’s how to choose the right target market for your business.

Intuitive vs. Deliberate Decision-Making

How does the brain make decisions? Are decisions made through conscious deliberation always better than intuitive decisions made on the fly? Our brains use two broad strategies for making decisions: conscious or deliberate decision-making and unconscious or intuitive decision-making. We usually think that deliberate decisions should be the way to go. But according to Malcolm Gladwell, both logical, conscious decision-making and snap judgments have their time and place. Here’s why deliberate decisions aren’t necessarily the best decisions.

How to Make the Right Decision: Skills for Life

The 3 Core Principles of Objective Decision Making

How do you approach decision-making? Is the right decision always the most informed decision? Most of us have been taught that to make good decisions, we need to consider as much information as possible. But sometimes the right decision is a less-informed decision. Too much information can overwhelm you with details and obscure the bigger picture. Here’s how to make the right decision by considering less information.