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Discover Your Inner Economist
Tyler Cowen
Use Incentives to Fall in Love, Survive Your Next Meeting, and Motivate Your Dentist
Dutton
August 2007
On Sale: August 2, 2007
256 pages
ISBN: 0525950257
EAN: 9780525950257
Hardcover
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Non-Fiction
In Discover Your Inner Economist one of America’s most
respected economists presents a quirky, incisive romp
through everyday life that reveals how you can turn economic
reasoning to your advantage—often when you least expect it
to be relevant. Like no other economist, Tyler Cowen shows how economic
notions--such as incentives, signals, and markets--apply far
more widely than merely to the decisions of social planners,
governments, and big business. What does economic theory say
about ordering from a menu? Or attracting the right mate? Or
controlling people who talk too much in meetings? Or dealing
with your dentist? With a wryly amusing voice, in chapters
such as “How to Control the World, The Basics†and “How to
Control the World, Knowing When to Stop†Cowen reveals the
hidden economic patterns behind everyday situations so you
can get more of what you really want. Readers will also gain less selfish insights into how to be
a good partner, neighbor and even citizen of the world. For
instance, what is the best way to give to charity? The
chapter title “How to Save the World—More Christmas Presents
Won’t Help†makes a point that is every bit as personal as
it is global. Incentives are at the core of an economic approach to the
world, but they don’t just come in cash. In fact, money can
be a disincentive. Cowen shows why, for example, it doesn’t
work to pay your kids to do the dishes. Other kinds of
incentives--like making sure family members know they will
be admired if they respect you--can work. Another non-
monetary incentive? Try having everyone stand up in your
next meeting if you don’t want anyone to drone on. Deeply
felt incentives like pride in one’s work or a passing smile
from a loved one, can be the most powerful of all, even
while they operate alongside more mundane rewards such as
money and free food. Discover Your Inner Economist is an introduction to the
science of economics that shows it to be built on notions
that are already within all of us. While the implications of
those ideas lead to Cowen’s often counterintuitive advice,
their wisdom is presented in ordinary examples taken from
home life, work life, and even vacation life… How do you get
a good guide in a Moroccan bazaar?
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