Book Review: Thinking, Fast and Slow
Inspired by James Clear and his article on how to retain more of every book you read, I decided to write a quick little summary of the book I’ve recently been reading:
Thinking, Fast and Slow by Daniel Kahneman
James often writes 3 sentences on books he reads, as a handy way to remember what was most important about the book.
I’ve decided to follow a similar route, but instead have chosen to write my top 5 take-aways instead.
Here’s my structure:
- quick book blurb
- top 5 take-ways
- fave quote
- end thoughts
Enjoy!
Book Blurb // Background of The Book
Author Daniel Kahneman is a winner of the Nobel prize for economics and this wonderful book combines hours of painstaking research he has undertaken in the past several decades. His background is pretty insane and you will learn about it as your read through the pages!
Kahneman’s book deals with how our brains think, as well as touching on other aspects of psychology.
In essence, Kahneman believes there are two types of thinking, characterized by system 1 (fast thoughts) and system 2 (slow thoughts):
- System 1: happen quickly and effortlessly, such as assumptions, first impressions or snap decisions.
- System 2: feel more effortful and use logic and reasoning to tackle harder questions and situations.
Take-Aways // Tessa’s Top 5
- The use of statistics can be wildly misleading — framing bias. Don’t forget that a 1 in 5 chance is the same as a 20% chance. The way data is presented has a strong impact on how we feel — 90% fat-free feels better than 10% fat.
- Optimism can hurt us. We tend to overestimate favourable, pleasurable outcomes. This also leads to underestimating costs or other unfavourable outcomes.
- We’re likely to think those events that we remember more easily, are more likely to happen -> availability bias. Remember this when something is shown in the media. what you see is not all there is.
- Prospect Theory: our thinking is biased by an aversion to loss — eliminating the risk of losing is preferable to increasing the risk of winning.
- The brain wants to save energy and so often makes quick decisions with System 1 thinking, often laced with emotional reactions. Recognize this, and try to leave your emotions to the side.
My Fav Quote // One For the Wall
“Nothing in life is as important as you think it is, when you are thinking it.” — Daniel Kahneman
Final Thoughts // Would I Recommend?
Yes, absolutely.
It’s a very engaging read, which is crammed full of titbits, mind puzzles and excellent perspectives.
It certainly has opened my eyes to about how I think, and particularly the impact of the media and advertising on our thought processes.
Well worth a read!
Have you read this book? What were your thoughts? Or have you read any other good books recently?
Here are 5 books that I read last year which had a lasting impact.
Thanks for reading Writers Guild — A Smedian publication
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