“BE YOURSELF” PARADOX: CAN AUTHENTICITY DO MORE HARM THAN GOOD? PART I
Case Scenario “Just be yourself and you will do great.” I caught myself before saying this statement to a client of mine last week, wishing him good luck before an interview for his dream job. I am glad I bit my tongue before saying it; this benevolent statement could have been dreadful advice. This particular […]
UNEXPECTED SETBACKS & THE ART OF SELF-COMPASSION
How do we usually react if a good friend tells us about a challenge they are going through? We will most likely offer support and encouragement. When you make a major mistake or suffer a loss, how do we perceive ourselves? We endorse our own self-criticism, shame, and ruminate about our poor judgment (“Why did […]
CHOICE ARCHITECTURE – ENERGY SECTOR (LAST ARTICLE IN THIS SERIES)
Whether by design or not, Choice Architecture surrounds us. Our behavior is affected by cues from the external environment that influence our behavior without necessarily depriving us from the capacity to make conscious choices. Warnings on cigarette packages, posted restaurant sanitary ratings, and the arrangement of items in a menu or supermarket shelves are few […]
CHOICE ARCHITECTURE (2) – FINANCIAL DECISIONS
In the first article, I introduced Choice Architecture and shared three examples how default options could lead to changes in healthcare at the personal and national levels. Here, I will focus on how the same concept was used in nudging people to make better savings and financial decisions by changing how the choices were presented. […]
CHOICE ARCHITECTURE (1)
The term Choice Architecture was coined almost a decade ago to refer to the practice of “influencing choice by organizing the context in which people make better decisions.” (Thaler & Sunstein, 2008). They – and others – showed experimentally that small changes in how choices are presented to us can lead to major changes in […]
SAPIENS’ HEALTH STATISTICAL ILLITERACY
Haunted by Decision Options, do we naturally understand statistical probabilities to make right decisions? KEY POINTS “’The fool doth think he is wise, but the wise man knows himself to be a fool.” Whenever the term statistics is mentioned in almost any casual conversation, the most common response is that of hate. Most cringe when […]
SEVEN TOOLS FOR TENSION MANAGEMENT
Simple to learn and relatively easy to carry out, we can use the tools below for our tension management and help others manage theirs. Let’s cut to the chase. 1. Make stress a good friend! Acknowledge that stress is not bad. Mentally frame stress as your friend. The energy you get from a healthy dose of stress or anxiety […]
THE FALL RESET BUTTON: 3 QS TO THINK ABOUT
1- What small-win, short-term goals can I realistically achieve over the next 3 months? Make sure that these goals are independent of the change of external circumstances. This would not only help you gain confidence and feel in control but also will give you a leeway to adapt to the ever-changing COVID-19 associated circumstances. Examples: 2- **What […]
THE PARADOXICAL COMMANDMENTS
“1- People can be illogical, unreasonable, and self-centered… Love them anyway. 2- If you do good, people might accuse you of selfish ulterior motives… Do good anyway. 3- If you are successful, you might win false friends and true enemies… Succeed anyway. 4- The good you do today might be forgotten tomorrow… Do good anyway. […]
THE MULTIPLE TRUE SELVES SAPIENS ARE
Decision Dilemma: Haunted by Decision Options, should sapiens be true to thine multiple true selves or to the one true self they think they are? KEY POINTS —Act I, Scene 3 – Hamlet To thine self be true is part of a speech by Polonius to his son, who is in a hurry to get on the […]
