Why am I passionate about this?

I had a long career as a management consultant, advising business leaders about their most important choices. One question never stopped bothering me: why do really, really great businesspeople sometimes make really, really bad decisions? After 25 years, I finally decided that this question was interesting enough that I wanted to become a professor in order to study it. So that’s what I do now – and I write about what I find.   


I wrote

You're About to Make a Terrible Mistake: How Biases Distort Decision-Making and What You Can Do to Fight Them

By Olivier Sibony ,

Book cover of You're About to Make a Terrible Mistake: How Biases Distort Decision-Making and What You Can Do to Fight Them

What is my book about?

“A masterful introduction to the state of the art in managerial decision making. Surprisingly, it is also a pleasure to…

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The books I picked & why

Book cover of Thinking, Fast and Slow

Olivier Sibony Why I love this book

This book made me leave a career in consulting and become a professor. Kahneman not only won the Nobel prize in economics without being an economist, he also has a gift for making you feel you understand psychological research even if you're not a psychologist. Thinking, Fast and Slow, the book that made "bias" a term everyone recognizes, is unquestionably the first book anyone with an interest in behavioral science and decision-making should read, and perhaps the last one, too. I re-read it at least once a year and always find something I had not paid enough attention to.

By Daniel Kahneman ,

Why should I read it?

48 authors picked Thinking, Fast and Slow as one of their favorite books, and they share why you should read it.

What is this book about?

The phenomenal international bestseller - 2 million copies sold - that will change the way you make decisions

'A lifetime's worth of wisdom' Steven D. Levitt, co-author of Freakonomics
'There have been many good books on human rationality and irrationality, but only one masterpiece. That masterpiece is Thinking, Fast and Slow' Financial Times

Why is there more chance we'll believe something if it's in a bold type face? Why are judges more likely to deny parole before lunch? Why do we assume a good-looking person will be more competent? The answer lies in the two ways we make choices: fast,…


Book cover of Nudge: The Final Edition

Olivier Sibony Why I love this book

After "bias," what is the second-most-popular behavioral science buzzword? Nudge, of course. Some think nudges are a brilliant invention; others claim they're a tool for cynical manipulation. Whether you are in one camp or in the other, the place to start is the book that made the case for "libertarian paternalism," now in a new, "final" edition. If you think you already know what nudges are, you may be surprised to find that "choice architecture," as Thaler and Sunstein call it, is a much more subtle art than you think.

By Richard H. Thaler , Cass R. Sunstein ,

Why should I read it?

6 authors picked Nudge as one of their favorite books, and they share why you should read it.

What is this book about?

*Once again a New York Times bestseller! First the original edition, and now the new Final Edition*

An essential new edition revised and updated from cover to cover of one of the most important books of the last two decades, by Nobel Prize winner Richard H. Thaler and Cass R. Sunstein

More than 2 million copies sold

Since the original publication of Nudge more than a decade ago, the title has entered the vocabulary of businesspeople, policy makers, engaged citizens, and consumers everywhere. The book has given rise to more than 400 "nudge units" in governments around the world and…


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Book cover of Social Security for Future Generations

Social Security for Future Generations by John A. Turner,

This book provides new options for reform of the Social Security (OASI) program. Some options are inspired by the U.S. pension system, while others are inspired by the literature on financial literacy or the social security systems in other countries.

An example of our proposals inspired by the U.S. pension…

Book cover of How to Change: The Science of Getting from Where You Are to Where You Want to Be

Olivier Sibony Why I love this book

Katy Milkman's 2021 book tackles the question that every self-help book since the invention of the genre has attempted to answer: how to (really, finally, durably) start doing what you want to do and stop doing what you don't. So, what is Milkman's secret weapon? Behavioral science, of course. In her view, whether a strategy for change works or not is not a matter of belief or personal experience – it is an empirical question to be tested by research. Personally, I think How to Change is the last self-help book I will ever need.

By Katy Milkman ,

Why should I read it?

4 authors picked How to Change as one of their favorite books, and they share why you should read it.

What is this book about?

'Game-changing. Katy Milkman shows in this book that we can all be a super human' Angela Duckworth, bestselling author of Grit

How to Change is a powerful, groundbreaking blueprint to help you - and anyone you manage, teach or coach - to achieve personal and professional goals, from the master of human nature and behaviour change and Choiceology podcast host Professor Katy Milkman.

Award-winning Wharton Professor Katy Milkman has devoted her career to the study of behaviour change. An engineer by training, she approaches all challenges as problems to be solved and, with this mind-set, has drilled into the roadblocks…


Book cover of The Scout Mindset: Why Some People See Things Clearly and Others Don't

Olivier Sibony Why I love this book

Even if you don't know anything about behavioral science, you know about confirmation bias, arguably the most insidious of our cognitive limitations. Simply put, people ignore or discount information that contradicts their beliefs, threatens their interests, or challenges their loyalties. Sure, we often spot this problem in others. But we also need to become aware of it – and to address it – in ourselves. In this book, Galef shows you, with practical, inspiring examples, how you can become a better, clearer, more rational thinker. This is the first book on thinking that I recommend to my students.

By Julia Galef ,

Why should I read it?

4 authors picked The Scout Mindset as one of their favorite books, and they share why you should read it.

What is this book about?

Winner of best smart thinking book 2022 (Business Book Awards)
Guardian best books of 2021

'Original, thought-provoking and a joy to read' Tim Harford

'Highly recommended. It's not easy to become (more of) a scout, but it's hard not to be inspired by this book' Rutger Bregman

When it comes to what we believe, humans see what they want to see. In other words, we have what Julia Galef calls a 'soldier' mindset. From tribalism and wishful thinking, to rationalising in our personal lives and everything in between, we are driven to defend the ideas we most want to believe…


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Book cover of Gifts from a Challenging Childhood: Healing the Legacy of Childhood Trauma

Gifts from a Challenging Childhood by Jan Bergstrom,

Learn to understand and work with your childhood wounds. Do you feel like old wounds or trauma from your childhood keep showing up today? Do you sometimes feel overwhelmed with what to do about it and where to start? If so, this book will help you travel down a path…

Book cover of Influence: The Psychology of Persuasion

Olivier Sibony Why I love this book

Cialdini's classic has sometimes been described as a "manipulation textbook." Indeed, the persuasion techniques it presents (with a treasure trove of examples and fascinating stories) are astoundingly powerful. The first time I read it, I often thought: "I hope this book does not end up in the wrong hands." With over 5 million copies in print, however, that ship has sailed: anyone who has not read Influence is at risk of being manipulated by a cunning salesman who has. Just as importantly, anyone who reads it will find many ethical applications of the book's insights.

By Robert B. Cialdini ,

Why should I read it?

27 authors picked Influence as one of their favorite books, and they share why you should read it.

What is this book about?

The foundational and wildly popular go-to resource for influence and persuasion-a renowned international bestseller, with over 5 million copies sold-now revised adding: new research, new insights, new examples, and online applications.

In the new edition of this highly acclaimed bestseller, Robert Cialdini-New York Times bestselling author of Pre-Suasion and the seminal expert in the fields of influence and persuasion-explains the psychology of why people say yes and how to apply these insights ethically in business and everyday settings. Using memorable stories and relatable examples, Cialdini makes this crucially important subject surprisingly easy. With Cialdini as a guide, you don't have…


Explore my book 😀

You're About to Make a Terrible Mistake: How Biases Distort Decision-Making and What You Can Do to Fight Them

By Olivier Sibony ,

Book cover of You're About to Make a Terrible Mistake: How Biases Distort Decision-Making and What You Can Do to Fight Them

What is my book about?

“A masterful introduction to the state of the art in managerial decision making. Surprisingly, it is also a pleasure to read.”
—Daniel Kahneman, recipient of the Nobel Prize in economics and author of Thinking, Fast and Slow

“Finally! Actionable advice for leaders based on decades of decision science. Succinct, accurate, and even-handed. I loved it!”
—Angela Duckworth, bestselling author of Grit

“A book filled with some fascinating, and frightening, stories of decision-making failures… it provides reassurance and advice to all of us with choices to make. It is also an easy read with actionable advice.”
—Financial Times July 2020 business book selection

“Brilliant, fun, and wise — a tremendous guide to sensible decision-making, in business and in daily life. Filled with vivid stories and big lessons, this book might well be the best investment you make this year.”
—Cass R. Sunstein, co-author of Nudge

“You’re probably familiar with many of the biases that can ruin your decisions. The question is what to do about them when you’re building your business strategy. Olivier Sibony has some compelling answers. Drawing on his extensive experience as a consultant and his impressive knowledge of behavioral science, he shows how you can make your team smarter than the people in it.”
—Adam Grant, bestselling author of Originals and Give and Take

Book cover of Thinking, Fast and Slow
Book cover of Nudge: The Final Edition
Book cover of How to Change: The Science of Getting from Where You Are to Where You Want to Be

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Interested in decision making, persuasion, and skepticism?

Decision Making 95 books
Persuasion 22 books
Skepticism 14 books