"What I'm Reading" is a BostInno series built to remind you that reading for pleasure and boosting your startup know-how are not mutually exclusive. Each Sunday, we'll be spotlighting a literary suggestion from a Boston thought leader to keep your bookshelf and your brain fresh.
Who: Jennifer Lum, co-founder of Adelphic, TechStars Boston mentor and angel investor.
Title: Thinking, Fast and Slow by Daniel Kahneman
About: In Thinking, Fast and Slow, legendary psychologist and winner of the Nobel Prize for Economic Science Daniel Kahneman explores the profound effects of cognitive illusions, speaks to the impact of overconfidence on both individuals and corporations and illuminates the systems through which people make decisions.
According to Kahneman, there are largely two types of decision-making styles. The first system relies on intuition, resulting in choosing courses of action quickly and emotionally. The second system, however, bases in logic, leading to more a deliberative and slower decision-making process. Over the course of the book, Kahneman reveals the tricks for tapping into “slow-thinking” decision-making and demonstrates how individuals and companies can ward off making choices driven by intuition.
The ability to harness thoughtful and rational decision-making skills should be of paramount importance to entrepreneurs. Innovators are notorious risk-takers, often willing to passionately plunge themselves into an unexplored idea and see where it leads them. Yet it’s key for a daring founder to consider her options carefully, and become conscious of her decision-making processes before committing to a course of action. When starting a business, an entrepreneur will be bombarded with choices, pressured to make guiding decisions fast and based upon a yet to be realized “big picture.”
“Entrepreneurs need to make decisions about their product, customers, operations and business all day, every day,” Lum told BostInno. “I’m interested in this book because it’s important to understand thought processes, especially irrational ones.”
Though she has just begun reading Kahneman’s work, Lum hopes to gain a deeper awareness of the decision making, both for the betterment of herself and for those around her.
Noted Lum, “I hope to pick up some useful tips from this book to improve my decision making and the way I interact with others."
