Are You a Magical Thinker?

First, a special announcement -- We are hosting a live podcast conversation in New York City next Monday, April 22 with the always colorful Scott Galloway to talk about his new book, The Algebra of Wealth: A Simple Formula for Financial Security. My alt subtitle? How To Get Rich and Stay That Way. Join us for cocktails, a signed copy of Scott's new book, and conversation.

This week on the Next Big Idea podcast, our Editorial Director, Panio Gianopoulos , sits down with linguist and bestselling author Amanda Montell for a rollicking exploration of the powers and perils of magical thinking.

Listen to the episode on Apple or Spotify, and share your thoughts in the comments below.

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Panio Gianopoulos — I’ve always prided myself on being a rational person. Whereas my sister, Katerina, is highly superstitious—she’ll often call me from Greece and complain that she has a headache because someone gave her the “evil eye" — I am quick to dismiss things like curses as silly and unproven. (“Have you tried drinking more water, Sis?”) I slide my car carelessly into parking spot number 13, spill salt and walk away without a thought, and I have never once rubbed a rabbit’s foot (First, it’s a severed foot—gross. Second, clearly the rabbit wasn’t that lucky if someone dismantled it).

?And yet, upon reading Amanda Montell’s brilliant and deliciously engaging new book, The Age of Magical Overthinking, I have to concede that I am not, in fact, immune to irrational thinking. It turns out that we are all susceptible to it. Just maybe not in the ways we might imagine…

Yes, I’m talking about cognitive biases. The availability heuristic, the sunk cost fallacy, the halo effect … our minds are swimming in irrational thinking. And while some of these biases may be familiar to you already, what makes Amanda’s take on them so fresh and fascinating is how she uses them to examine our culture at large. From celebrity worship to astrology to the popularity of “manifesting,” she argues that these are attempts to resolve our rising levels of anxiety. In our screen-filled, information-saturated, always-on age, our brain’s coping mechanisms have been overloaded, and our irrationality cranked up to the maximum.

Is there any hope for us? Yes! To find out what we can do about this information-age irrationality—and to be entertained by Amanda’s fascinating journey through this irrational Wonderland, check out the episode.?

Listen to the episode on Apple or Spotify, and share your thoughts in the comments below.

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