The Stupidity Paradox

Author: Mats Alvesson
Publisher: Profile Books
ISBN: 1782832025
Category : Business & Economics
Languages : en
Pages : 260

Book Description
Functional stupidity can be catastrophic. It can cause organisational collapse, financial meltdown and technical disaster. And there are countless, more everyday examples of organisations accepting the dubious, the absurd and the downright idiotic, from unsustainable management fads to the cult of leadership or an over-reliance on brand and image. And yet a dose of stupidity can be useful and produce good, short-term results: it can nurture harmony, encourage people to get on with the job and drive success. This is the stupidity paradox. The Stupidity Paradox tackles head-on the pros and cons of functional stupidity. You'll discover what makes a workplace mindless, why being stupid might be a good thing in the short term but a disaster in the longer term, and how to make your workplace a little less stupid by challenging thoughtless conformity. It shows how harmony and action in the workplace can be balanced with a culture of questioning and challenge. The book is a wake-up call for smart organisations and smarter people. It encourages us to use our intelligence fully for the sake of personal satisfaction, organisational success and the flourishing of society as a whole.

The Stupidity Paradox

Author: Mats Alvesson
Publisher: Ips - Profile Books
ISBN: 9781781255414
Category : Business & Economics
Languages : en
Pages : 0

Book Description
Something strange is happening in our knowledge economy - organisations everywhere are encouraging smart people to do stupid things. At its extremes, this kind of systematic stupidity can be catastrophic - witness the institutional blindness in financial services that led to the crisis of 2008. But we can all relate to more everyday examples of losing touch with the need to question the dubious and criticise the absurd, from unsustainable management fads or the cult of leadership and strategy through to an over-reliance on brand and image. This title tackles head-on the pros and cons of a culture of questioning and challenge in the workplace. Harmony and action at all costs can be attractive and can also bring short-term benefits.

The Stupidity Paradox

Author: Mats Alvesson
Publisher:
ISBN: 9781781255421
Category : Critical thinking
Languages : en
Pages : 276

Book Description
Why do smart people do stupid things at work? Welcome to the idea of functional stupidity. Functional stupidity can be catastrophic. It can cause organizational collapse, financial meltdown and technical disaster. And there are countless, more everyday examples of organizations accepting the dubious, the absurd and the downright idiotic, from unsustainable management fads to the cult of leadership or an over-reliance on brand and image. And yet a dose of stupidity can be useful and produce good, short-term results: it can nurture harmony, encourage people to get on with the job and drive success. This is the stupidity paradox. The Stupidity Paradox tackles head-on the pros and cons of functional stupidity. You'll discover what makes a workplace mindless, why being stupid might be a good thing in the short term but a disaster in the longer term, and how to make your workplace a little less stupid by challenging thoughtless conformity. It shows how harmony and action in the workplace can be balanced with a culture of questioning and challenge. The book is a wake-up call for smart organizations and smarter people. It encourages us to use our intelligence fully for the sake of personal satisfaction, organizational success and the flourishing of society as a whole. --Amazon.com.

Rebels at Work

Author: Lois Kelly
Publisher: "O'Reilly Media, Inc."
ISBN: 1491903910
Category : Business & Economics
Languages : en
Pages : 165

Book Description
Ready to stand up and create positive change at work, but reluctant to speak up? True leadership doesn’t always come from a position of power or authority. By teaching you skills and providing practical advice, this handbook shows you how to engage your coworkers and bosses and bring your ideas forward so that they are heard, considered, and acted upon. Authors Carmen Medina and Lois Kelly—once rebels themselves—reveal ways to navigate your workplace, avoid common mistakes and traps, and overcome the fears that may be holding you back. You can achieve more success and less frustration, help your organization do better work, and—most important—find more meaning and joy in what you do.

The Basic Laws of Human Stupidity

Author: Carlo M. Cipolla
Publisher: National Geographic Books
ISBN: 0385546475
Category : Humor
Languages : en
Pages : 0

Book Description
"A masterly book" —Nassim Nicholas Taleb, author of The Black Swan "A classic" —Simon Kuper, Financial Times An economist explains five laws that confirm our worst fears: stupid people can and do rule the world Throughout history, a powerful force has hindered the growth of human welfare and happiness. It is more powerful than the Mafia or the military. It has global catastrophic effects and can be found anywhere from the world's most powerful boardrooms to your local bar. It is human stupidity. Carlo M. Cipolla, noted professor of economic history at the UC Berkeley, created this vitally important book in order to detect and neutralize its threat. Both hilarious and dead serious, it will leave you better equipped to confront political realities, unreasonable colleagues, or your next dinner with your in-laws. The Laws: 1. Everyone underestimates the number of stupid individuals among us. 2. The probability that a certain person is stupid is independent of any other characteristic of that person. 3. A stupid person is a person who causes losses to another person while deriving no gain and even possibly incurring losses themselves. 4. Non-stupid people always underestimate the damaging power of stupid individuals. 5. A stupid person is the most dangerous type of person.

The Socratic Paradox and Its Enemies

Author: Roslyn Weiss
Publisher: University of Chicago Press
ISBN: 0226891720
Category : Philosophy
Languages : en
Pages : 249

Book Description
In The Socratic Paradox and Its Enemies, Roslyn Weiss argues that the Socratic paradoxes—no one does wrong willingly, virtue is knowledge, and all the virtues are one—are best understood as Socrates’ way of combating sophistic views: that no one is willingly just, those who are just and temperate are ignorant fools, and only some virtues (courage and wisdom) but not others (justice, temperance, and piety) are marks of true excellence. In Weiss’s view, the paradoxes express Socrates’ belief that wrongdoing fails to yield the happiness that all people want; it is therefore the unjust and immoderate who are the fools. The paradoxes thus emerge as Socrates’ means of championing the cause of justice in the face of those who would impugn it. Her fresh approach—ranging over six of Plato’s dialogues—is sure to spark debate in philosophy, classics, and political theory. “Regardless of whether one agrees or disagrees with Weiss, it would be hard not to admire her extraordinarily penetrating analysis of the many overlapping and interweaving arguments running through the dialogues.”—Daniel B. Gallagher, Classical Outlook “Many scholars of Socratic philosophy . . . will wish they had written Weiss's book, or at least will wish that they had long ago read it.”—Douglas V. Henry, Review of Politics

The Intelligence Paradox

Author: Satoshi Kanazawa
Publisher: Turner Publishing Company
ISBN: 1118137663
Category : Science
Languages : en
Pages : 223

Book Description
A book that challenges common misconceptions about the nature of intelligence Satoshi Kanazawa's Why Beautiful People Have More Daughters (written with Alan S. Miller) was hailed by the Los Angeles Times as "a rollicking bit of pop science that turns the lens of evolutionary psychology on issues of the day." That book answered such burning questions as why women tend to lust after males who already have mates and why newborns look more like Dad than Mom. Now Kanazawa tackles the nature of intelligence: what it is, what it does, what it is good for (if anything). Highly entertaining, smart (dare we say intelligent?), and daringly contrarian, The Intelligence Paradox will provide a deeper understanding of what intelligence is, and what it means for us in our lives. Asks why more intelligent individuals are not better (and are, in fact, often worse) than less intelligent individuals in solving some of the most important problems in life—such as finding a mate, raising children, and making friends Discusses why liberals are more intelligent than conservatives, why atheists are more intelligent than the religious, why more intelligent men value monogamy, why night owls are more intelligent than morning larks, and why homosexuals are more intelligent than heterosexuals Explores how the purpose for which general intelligence evolved—solving evolutionarily novel problems—allows us to explain why intelligent people have the particular values and preferences they have Challenging common misconceptions about the nature of intelligence, this book offers surprising insights into the cutting-edge of science at the intersection of evolutionary psychology and intelligence research.

Why Smart People Can Be So Stupid

Author: Robert J. Sternberg
Publisher: Yale University Press
ISBN: 0300128207
Category : Psychology
Languages : en
Pages : 264

Book Description
“A serious attempt to understand a common phenomenon” from the author of The Nature of Human Intelligence (Psychology Today). One need not look far to find breathtaking acts of stupidity committed by people who are smart, or even brilliant. The behavior of clever individuals—from presidents to prosecutors to professors—is at times so amazingly stupid as to seem inexplicable. Why do otherwise intelligent people think and behave in ways so stupid that they sometimes destroy their livelihoods or even their lives? This is an investigation of psychological research to see what it can tell us about stupidity in everyday life. The contributors to the volume—scholars in various areas of human intelligence—present examples of people messing up their lives, and offer insights into the reasons for such behavior. From a variety of perspectives, the contributors discuss: The nature and theory of stupidity How stupidity contributes to stupid behavior Whether stupidity is measurable. While many millions of dollars are spent each year on intelligence research and testing to determine who has the ability to succeed, next to nothing is spent to determine who will make use of their intelligence and not squander it by behaving stupidly. The contributors focus on the neglected side of this discussion, reviewing the full range of theory and research on stupid behavior and analyzing what it tells us about how people can avoid stupidity and its devastating consequences. “Marvelous, devilishly clever, and culturally timely book . . . A fascinating exploration.” —Choice “Easily readable and well referenced . . . May provide just enough momentum for change.” —International Journal of Intelligence

Useful Delusions: The Power and Paradox of the Self-Deceiving Brain

Author: Shankar Vedantam
Publisher: W. W. Norton & Company
ISBN: 0393652211
Category : Psychology
Languages : en
Pages : 198

Book Description
A Behavioral Scientist Notable Book of 2021 A Next Big Idea Club Best Nonfiction of 2021 From the New York Times best-selling author and host of Hidden Brain comes a thought-provoking look at the role of self-deception in human flourishing. Self-deception does terrible harm to us, to our communities, and to the planet. But if it is so bad for us, why is it ubiquitous? In Useful Delusions, Shankar Vedantam and Bill Mesler argue that, paradoxically, self-deception can also play a vital role in our success and well-being. The lies we tell ourselves sustain our daily interactions with friends, lovers, and coworkers. They can explain why some people live longer than others, why some couples remain in love and others don’t, why some nations hold together while others splinter. Filled with powerful personal stories and drawing on new insights in psychology, neuroscience, and philosophy, Useful Delusions offers a fascinating tour of what it really means to be human.

The Chimp Paradox

Author: Steve Peters
Publisher: Penguin
ISBN: 110161062X
Category : Business & Economics
Languages : en
Pages : 368

Book Description
Your inner Chimp can be your best friend or your worst enemy...this is the Chimp Paradox Do you sabotage your own happiness and success? Are you struggling to make sense of yourself? Do your emotions sometimes dictate your life? Dr. Steve Peters explains that we all have a being within our minds that can wreak havoc on every aspect of our lives—be it business or personal. He calls this being "the chimp," and it can work either for you or against you. The challenge comes when we try to tame the chimp, and persuade it to do our bidding. The Chimp Paradox contains an incredibly powerful mind management model that can help you be happier and healthier, increase your confidence, and become a more successful person. This book will help you to: —Recognize how your mind is working —Understand and manage your emotions and thoughts —Manage yourself and become the person you would like to be Dr. Peters explains the struggle that takes place within your mind and then shows you how to apply this understanding. Once you're armed with this new knowledge, you will be able to utilize your chimp for good, rather than letting your chimp run rampant with its own agenda.