Predictably Irrational by Dan Ariely is an interesting book to read and presents some interesting and surprising insights about human psychology and behavior. Most of the topics Ariely talks about will help us understand human behavior better and, hopefully, improve our decision making process. One cause of concern would be that armed with this knowledge, people could potentially create situation where human behavior can be exploited for illegitimate purposes.
Through some interesting experiments and observations, Ariely appears convincing as some of the examples he talks about seem very real and gives me the feeling of déjà-vu. While the book does not talk about strategy and how the readings contained within affect the strategic process, a reader can weave those insights into different levels of strategy. At the corporate level strategic direction can be managed based on stake holders’ expectations and vice versa. On the product front pricing strategy, for example, could be influenced by understand the psyche of the targeted user.
The key personal takeaways for me from this reading are:
1. Be aware of people’s behavior when dealing with or managing them: people tend to compare things with one another.
2. Manage expectations of the people you work with: As expectations lead to perceptions about reality, managing those expectations early on and setting your goals and requirements upfront will help in building good relationships and creating effective teams that, cohesively, produce superior output.
3. Procrastination can really harm a person as well as create an atmosphere that is not conducive.
4. While it is good to have options, I have to be aware that there might be definite timelines that I would miss in trying to keep multiple options open.
5. Try to be yourself weather at work or at home. This will make things more simple and straightforward.
The key takeaway for someone looking to enhance their understanding of strategy and improve their strategic thinking skills is:
1. Ensure that options available are not a drag on the organization and that switching cost between options is minimal. Internalize the process so that a creep in does not result during strategic planning.
2. Manage expectation of stakeholders when planning. This also translates to effective communication, both from a personal and organizational stand point. Ensuring that we are conveying what we intend to would help reduce confusion and misunderstanding of the goals of the strategic planning/implementation process.
3. Not to make strategic decisions when one is aroused.
When I put the book down after reading, my first instinct was to think how I had been affected by the different aspects that Ariely talks about. Going through the process, I realized that, while it is not possible to completely avoid all the aspects, it makes sense over time to recognize such behavior and plan ahead to ensure our decisions and personal conduct is such that we can talk about it in the open.
