Wall Street Journal bestselling author Nir Eyal writes and consults about the intersection of psychology, technology, and business. In his new book, Indistractable, Nir explores the dark side of habit-forming products and provides strategies for overcoming the power of distraction. I got an advance review copy of the book and …
Personal Development
3 counterintuitive ways to excel in conversation
In last week’s article, 3 Ways to be Insufferable in Conversation, we met a fictional character named Jack. Jack is a master at turning conversations into a one-person show where he always sits in the spotlight. I put Jack together—like Frankenstein’s monster—from various people I’ve encountered in life (including my …
3 Ways to Be Insufferable in Conversation
The art of conversation is a dying one. I don’t know if it’s just me, but in the past few years, I’ve noticed a significant downward trend in people’s ability to hold a conversation and to engage—to really engage—with the person sitting across the table from them. To illustrate the …
How avoiding danger can make us less safe
What if measures intended to keep us safe actually made things worse? Consider the case of allergies. Since 2010, the number of U.S. children with peanut allergies has increased by 21 percent. Allergies to tree nuts went up by 18 percent, and shellfish allergies by 7 percent. These allergies can …