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How Changing Habits Can Change Your Business Environment, Society, and Life

Habits significantly influence people’s behavior and actions, from personal to business and broader social contexts, which is why it is important to understand them. Charles Duhigg’s book discusses precisely this, the mechanisms of habits and how, once recognized, they can be changed, which is neither easy nor simple, but it is possible.

Citing concrete examples from the life of Olympic athlete Michael Phelps, Starbucks CEO Howard Schultz, human rights activist Martin Luther King Jr., and dozens of other famous and less famous individuals, Duhigg explains how by applying new scientific insights about habits we can change our business environment, society, and life.

Charles Duhigg
The Power of Habit
Mozaik knjiga, Zagreb, 2013.

In his new hit ‘The Upside of Irrationality’, Dan Ariely studies behavior at work and in private life, discusses the unexpected positive and negative effects of illogical decisions, explores why behavior often leads us down the wrong path in romantic relationships and business dealings, and why it tempts us to cheat, lie, and steal. His findings are surprising: although we believe we can make rational assessments in everyday situations, in reality, we often allow our intuition and feelings to govern our decisions and behavior, succumbing to biases and unconsciously making mistakes, to our detriment.

Dan Ariely
The Upside of Irrationality
V.B.Z., Zagreb, 2013.

When his sister persuades him to drive her guru, a Buddhist priest, to their hometown, convinced skeptic Otto Ringling reluctantly accepts with great resistance. Spending six days on the road with an inscrutable holy man who answers every question with a riddle is not an experience he would look forward to. However, in an attempt to ‘Westernize’ his companion, Otto decides to show the priest a little ‘fun the American way’ along the way. This will turn out to be a humorous encounter between two intriguing individuals, one whose gaze is constantly focused on the goal, foot on the gas pedal, and the other who knows that we will get the farthest if we are not going anywhere. On this journey, Otto will learn something about himself and his life.