I Read 10 Money Articles A Day–So Why Am I Confused? A Take on Why Personal Finance Education is Failing
We Americans are failing at money management. We have issues with debt and saving for retirement. We have even more pressing issues. Over 40 percent of Americans don’t save money for emergencies, even though experts say this is one of the highest priorities. Lack of information does not seem to be ...

Hotelling’s Game, or Why Gas Stations Have Competitors Nearby
There are hundreds of gas stations around San Francisco in the California Bay area. One might think that gas stations would spread out to serve local neighborhoods. But this idea is contradicted by a common observation. Whenever you visit a gas station, there is almost always another in the vicinity, ...

Pondering the American Work Ethic
My article on saving more or earning more has ignited an interesting conversation on the Brazen Careerist website. One commenter interprets my advice as encouraging slackers and worries about the future of America's work ethic. It's hard to argue because (1) I sort of agree and (2) the commenter tells me ...

Save More or Earn More?
Should you save more or earn more? This is a frequent money question. It’s also a misguided one. When I hear this question, I say I want both. I need to earn more so that I can enjoy higher quality products. But for a given income level, I need to save more ...

Winning a “Beauty Contest,” Or How My Game Theory Professor Gambled $250 Teaching a Lesson
Using game theory is like playing high stakes poker. You can predict the right moves, but you can still get burned by surprises. Game theorists often gamble more than just academic integrity and pride. In one very memorable lecture, my college professor staked $250 to teach a lesson about crowd ...

Every Story Has Two Sides
This is the third article in the Mind Your Decisions “week of skepticism.” See the older articles on buying used products and self-serving financial advice. Today I merely reflect on how humbling it can be to be wrong. In Africa, two men stand at a river that they are about to cross ...

Most Financial Advisers Don’t Put You First
This is the second article in the Mind Your Decisions “week of skepticism.” All this week I am discussing misguided or crooked financial advice. The general theme is to be more careful about advice from people who sell you products or don’t consider strategic implications. See the first article on ...

Game Theory scene from A Beautiful Mind
Two Introductory Announcements First, welcome to the Mind Your Decisions “week of skepticism.” All this week I will address misguided or crooked financial advice. The general theme is to be more careful about advice from people who sell you products or don’t consider strategic implications. Especially watch for well-intentioned but poorly ...

Build Trust at Work
The lesson of today: don’t speak behind other people's back. It’s stupid to write bad things in an email because text has permanence and manages to get forwarded around. But it’s even bad form when you're casually joking around with a friend. Stephen R. Covey, author of 7 Habits of Highly ...

Did I Wash My Hands? How to Manage Risk
I put the garbage out yesterday and came back to my room quickly. I had been concentrating on an article, so I wanted to start drafting right away. Just before my fingers touched my keyboard, I started to doubt myself. Did I wash my hands after taking out the trash? My ...