Anecdotes

Savings Coin in Kenya

• Dan Ariely's team experimented with savings strategies in a Kenyan slum called Kibera.


• They provided a coin with 24 numbers etched on its edges, representing the weeks of the program.


• Participants were instructed to scratch off a number each week, indicating whether they saved or not.


• The coin doubled savings compared to other m

Duolingo's Super Bowl Steal

• Brands spend millions on Super Bowl ads, but Duolingo stole 84% of the conversation the next day.


• They achieved this by humorously 'killing their green owl with a test of the truck'.


• Dan Salkey uses this to illustrate that a small, clever social media moment can overshadow huge marketing investments.


• Memory is fleeting in

Value Based on Perceived Effort

• People's willingness to pay for something depends on perceived fairness.


• Fairness relates to how much effort people put in to provide the value.


• Dan Ariely provides an example of asking someone for a quarter at a parking meter.


• People are unwilling to pay a dollar for a quarter from a stranger.


• However, people are willi

Oak Tree vs. Bamboo

• A strong oak tree breaks in a storm while flexible bamboo bends but doesn't break.


• Be like bamboo: flexible, adaptable, and willing to learn and change.

Transcript:

Other Speaker

You are very open to learning. You're not rigid. And rigidity is death. You know, like you're just stuck in new ways and not willing to learn. There's a p

Fisherman Parable on Contentment

• The story of a fisherman content with his simple life reveals how people waste effort chasing what they already have.


• This parable highlights the unnecessary complication of pursuing peace and happiness.

Twinkies Diet

• Professor Mark Haub of Kansas State University ate mostly sugary sweets every three hours for ten weeks while in a calorie deficit.


• He lost 27 pounds, and his health markers improved.


• This, and other similar studies, suggest that getting to a healthy weight is more important than nutrient quality initially.

Transcript:

Other Speaker

Right

Name Your Own Price for ATM Fees

• Instead of eliminating ATM fees, let customers pay what they want, even zero.


• This acknowledges the cost of service while empowering customer generosity and avoiding resentment.

Compare the Market's Meerkat Success

• The UK brand Compare the Market copied GEICO's fluent device idea with Alexander the Meerkat.


• This character helped Compare the Market rise from fourth to number one in its sector.

The Power of Visible Actions

• A coin-based savings experiment in Kenya doubled savings rates.


• Making invisible actions like saving more visible can significantly impact motivation and incentives.