Don't Trust Your Gut: Using Data to Get What You Really Want in Life
- Downloads：5333
- Type：Epub+TxT+PDF+Mobi
- Create Date：2022-05-17 06:53:16
- Update Date：2025-09-06
- Status：finish
- Author：Seth Stephens-Davidowitz
- ISBN：0062880918
- Environment：PC/Android/iPhone/iPad/Kindle
- Download
Summary
Seth Stephens-Davidowitz is as good a data storyteller as I have ever met。” — Steven Levitt， co-author， Freakonomics
Big decisions are hard。 We consult friends and family， make sense of confusing “expert” advice online， maybe we read a self-help book to guide us。 In the end， we usually just do what feels right， pursuing high stakes self-improvement—such as who we marry， how to date， where to live， what makes us happy—based solely on what our gut instinct tells us。 But what if our gut is wrong？ Biased， unpredictable， and misinformed， our gut， it turns out， is not all that reliable。 And data can prove this。
In Don’t Trust Your Gut， economist， former Google data scientist， and New York Times bestselling author Seth Stephens-Davidowitz reveals just how wrong we really are when it comes to improving our own lives。 In the past decade， scholars have mined enormous datasets to find remarkable new approaches to life’s biggest self-help puzzles。 Data from hundreds of thousands of dating profiles have revealed surprising successful strategies to get a date; data from hundreds of millions of tax records have uncovered the best places to raise children; data from millions of career trajectories have found previously unknown reasons why some rise to the top。
Telling fascinating， unexpected stories with these numbers and the latest big data research， Stephens-Davidowitz exposes that， while we often think we know how to better ourselves， the numbers disagree。 Hard facts and figures consistently contradict our instincts and demonstrate self-help that actually works—whether it involves the best time in life to start a business or how happy it actually makes us to skip a friend’s birthday party for a night of Netflix on the couch。 From the boring careers that produce the most wealth， to the old-school， data-backed relationship advice so well-worn it’s become a literal joke， he unearths the startling conclusions that the right data can teach us about who we are and what will make our lives better。
Lively， engrossing， and provocative， the end result opens up a new world of self-improvement made possible with massive troves of data。 Packed with fresh， entertaining insights， Don’t Trust Your Gut redefines how to tackle our most consequential choices， one that hacks the market inefficiencies of life and leads us to make smarter decisions about how to improve our lives。 Because in the end， the numbers don’t lie。
Big decisions are hard。 We consult friends and family， make sense of confusing “expert” advice online， maybe we read a self-help book to guide us。 In the end， we usually just do what feels right， pursuing high stakes self-improvement—such as who we marry， how to date， where to live， what makes us happy—based solely on what our gut instinct tells us。 But what if our gut is wrong？ Biased， unpredictable， and misinformed， our gut， it turns out， is not all that reliable。 And data can prove this。
In Don’t Trust Your Gut， economist， former Google data scientist， and New York Times bestselling author Seth Stephens-Davidowitz reveals just how wrong we really are when it comes to improving our own lives。 In the past decade， scholars have mined enormous datasets to find remarkable new approaches to life’s biggest self-help puzzles。 Data from hundreds of thousands of dating profiles have revealed surprising successful strategies to get a date; data from hundreds of millions of tax records have uncovered the best places to raise children; data from millions of career trajectories have found previously unknown reasons why some rise to the top。
Telling fascinating， unexpected stories with these numbers and the latest big data research， Stephens-Davidowitz exposes that， while we often think we know how to better ourselves， the numbers disagree。 Hard facts and figures consistently contradict our instincts and demonstrate self-help that actually works—whether it involves the best time in life to start a business or how happy it actually makes us to skip a friend’s birthday party for a night of Netflix on the couch。 From the boring careers that produce the most wealth， to the old-school， data-backed relationship advice so well-worn it’s become a literal joke， he unearths the startling conclusions that the right data can teach us about who we are and what will make our lives better。
Lively， engrossing， and provocative， the end result opens up a new world of self-improvement made possible with massive troves of data。 Packed with fresh， entertaining insights， Don’t Trust Your Gut redefines how to tackle our most consequential choices， one that hacks the market inefficiencies of life and leads us to make smarter decisions about how to improve our lives。 Because in the end， the numbers don’t lie。
Reviews
Chris Boutté
，
I’ve read over 90 books in 2022， and this book is definitely in my top 5。 Maybe even top 3。 I absolutely loved Seth’s previous book Everybody Lies and had no clue he was working on a new book， so this was a pleasant surprise。 For those who are unfamiliar with Seth’s work， he dives into data to debunk a lot of conventional wisdom and help us see the truth that’s often hidden by our biases and other cognitive shortcuts。 His previous book was more about helping us see the world through a clearer le I’ve read over 90 books in 2022， and this book is definitely in my top 5。 Maybe even top 3。 I absolutely loved Seth’s previous book Everybody Lies and had no clue he was working on a new book， so this was a pleasant surprise。 For those who are unfamiliar with Seth’s work， he dives into data to debunk a lot of conventional wisdom and help us see the truth that’s often hidden by our biases and other cognitive shortcuts。 His previous book was more about helping us see the world through a clearer lens， but this one is much different。Seth brands this book as self-help， but I don’t even think that category does the book justice because it covers so much。 Yes， if you read this book， I guarantee your life will get at least a tiny bit better if you take in what he’s showing with the data， but it also helps us take a look at how we all have different advantages and disadvantages。 The book covers what the data really says about what makes for long-lasting， great relationships， the biggest factor when it comes to children becoming successful， and how Seth gave himself a makeover using data to make himself more attractive。Since I’m obsessed with the topics of skill， success， and luck， my favorite two chapters covered these topics。 A lot of books either don’t cover both sides of this debate or don’t do a great job of doing so。 I think Seth nailed it by discussing how luck plays a big role in success， but it also takes hard work and taking advantage of opportunities that come your way。I could talk about this book all day， but this is all I’ll say for now。 Hopefully， it has interested you enough to go get a copy ASAP。 。。。more
Canwen
，
I was a little disappointed by this book。 While it still contains valuable and interesting insights， the author relies primarily on conclusions from other experts rather than his own research （unlike his last book， Everybody Lies， which everyone should read）。 As a result I had already read or at least heard about the studies that he references。 It felt like he had synthesized a couple points from better-researched texts like Thinking Fast & Slow and The Genetic Lottery and combined them together I was a little disappointed by this book。 While it still contains valuable and interesting insights， the author relies primarily on conclusions from other experts rather than his own research （unlike his last book， Everybody Lies， which everyone should read）。 As a result I had already read or at least heard about the studies that he references。 It felt like he had synthesized a couple points from better-researched texts like Thinking Fast & Slow and The Genetic Lottery and combined them together。 I also found his writing to be entertaining but overly repetitive。 I found I was able to skim at least a few paragraphs in each section and still understand the takeaway。 This book wasn’t bad by any means — I still learned a lot of interesting stuff！ But it won’t blow you away as much as his first one。 。。。more
Mo
，
This was an accessible and quick read but still packed a big punch！ Lots of great data and insights delivered with a wonderful mix of humor and thoughtful reflection。 Thank you so much to Goodreads， the publisher and author for the giveaway copy。
Annarella
，
I work in high tech and work with data， a lot of data。 This book is well written and the author challenge the idea that you have to trust your gut。Data don't lie but they can be wrong or can be read in the wrong way。I partly agree with the author but I recommend this book as data are becoming a commodity and you must know how to use them。Recommended。Many thanks to the publisher and Netgalley for this ARC， all opinions are mine I work in high tech and work with data， a lot of data。 This book is well written and the author challenge the idea that you have to trust your gut。Data don't lie but they can be wrong or can be read in the wrong way。I partly agree with the author but I recommend this book as data are becoming a commodity and you must know how to use them。Recommended。Many thanks to the publisher and Netgalley for this ARC， all opinions are mine 。。。more
Stephanie
，
I finished this book about a week ago and don't think I've shut up about it since。 If you're into provocative insights into everyday life featuring data in a fun way （think Freakonomics Radio or FiveThirtyEight style storytelling）， this is right up your alley。 I didn't realize when I requested this ARC that I had another one of the author's books on my TBR shelf， so that title will be moving up on my priority list as well。Although not everything was applicable to me at the present - like the par I finished this book about a week ago and don't think I've shut up about it since。 If you're into provocative insights into everyday life featuring data in a fun way （think Freakonomics Radio or FiveThirtyEight style storytelling）， this is right up your alley。 I didn't realize when I requested this ARC that I had another one of the author's books on my TBR shelf， so that title will be moving up on my priority list as well。Although not everything was applicable to me at the present - like the parenting chapters - the author still kept my attention and I didn't skim over where I typically might have in another book。 Stephens-Davidowitz does a great job of illustrating what big data has proven goes against our natural instincts in areas such as dating， parenting， choosing careers， and more， while not succumbing to the pitfall of stuffing the book with too much， like many other non-fiction and self-help titles tend to do。ARC received from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review。 。。。more
Adam Volk
，
If only all self help books were this insightful， funny， entertaining and well written。 As a follow up to his first groundbreaking book “Everybody Lies” （which looked at how search data can answer some of life’s biggest questions）， “Don’t Trust Your Gut” uses data to show how we can be happier and more fulfilled in love， life， parenting and careers。 Highly recommended for self help readers， data geeks， Seinfeld fans， sports junkies， middle-aged entrepreneurs and pretty much anyone on the planet If only all self help books were this insightful， funny， entertaining and well written。 As a follow up to his first groundbreaking book “Everybody Lies” （which looked at how search data can answer some of life’s biggest questions）， “Don’t Trust Your Gut” uses data to show how we can be happier and more fulfilled in love， life， parenting and careers。 Highly recommended for self help readers， data geeks， Seinfeld fans， sports junkies， middle-aged entrepreneurs and pretty much anyone on the planet looking for a better life （or at the very least a fun and informative read）。*Disclaimer: I received a galley copy of this book from the publisher。 。。。more
Morag Murray
，