Barry Schwartz

Practical wisdom is what's called for in situations that have a moral dimension to them.

— Barry Schwartz

“Practical wisdom," Aristotle told us, "is the combination of moral will and moral skill.”

— Barry Schwartz

“Focus on what makes you happy, and do what gives meaning to your life”

— Barry Schwartz

“to be satisfied with our work, we typically need a belief in the purpose of what we do. Amy”

— Barry Schwartz

“Happiness as a goal is a recipe for disaster.”

— Barry Schwartz

I don't really read 'business books,' and I didn't think 'The Paradox of Choice' was a business book. I'm very surprised and…

— Barry Schwartz

“Being able to criticize our own certainties is often a painful struggle, demanding some courage as we try to stand back and…

— Barry Schwartz

Of course, bankers were always interested in making money. But when bankers had clients, they bore some responsibility for the clients' welfare.

— Barry Schwartz

“According to standard economic assumptions, the only opportunity costs that should figure into a decision are the ones associated with the next-best…

— Barry Schwartz

I start with an idea that is no more than a paragraph long, and expand it slowly into an outline. But I'm…

— Barry Schwartz

What I look for in any book is an argument, based on evidence, that changes the way I think about something important.

— Barry Schwartz

“If society asks more of us, and arranges its social institutions appropriately, it will get more.”

— Barry Schwartz

People who work in financial services don't have one shred of concern about the well-being of the people they serve. They're only…

— Barry Schwartz

“The fact that counterfactual thinking seems to hone in on the controllable aspects of a situation only increases the chances that a…

— Barry Schwartz

“The alternative to maximizing is to be a satisficer. To satisfice is to settle for something that is good enough and not…

— Barry Schwartz

When you rely on incentives, you undermine virtues. Then when you discover that you actually need people who want to do the…

— Barry Schwartz

In an ideal world, nobody's work would be just about the money. People could pursue excellence in what they do, take pride…

— Barry Schwartz

“The Paradox of Choice has a simple yet profoundly life-altering message for all Americans. Schwartz’s eleven practical, simple steps to becoming less…

— Barry Schwartz

How much does it really matter whether your child will soon be enjoying a first year at Harvard or Yale or will…

— Barry Schwartz

Everybody makes money for a living, but most of us actually do something that has a point, in addition to just making…

— Barry Schwartz

“When asked about what they regret most in the last six months, people tend to identify actions that didn’t meet expectations. But…

— Barry Schwartz

“Emotions properly trained and modulated, Aristotle told his readers, are essential to being practically wise: We can experience fear, confidence, desire, anger,…

— Barry Schwartz

“Most of us think about empathy as a “feeling” or an “emotion.” It is. To be empathetic is to be able to…

— Barry Schwartz

“Most people give substantial weight to anecdotal evidence, perhaps so much that it will cancel out positive recommendations found in consumer reports.…

— Barry Schwartz

“Nobel Prize–winning psychologist Daniel Kahneman and his colleagues have shown that what we remember about the pleasurable quality of our past experiences…

— Barry Schwartz

“You buy a pair of shoes that turn out to be uncomfortable. Thaler suggests the expensive they were, the more often you'll…

— Barry Schwartz

“When people are looking for causes of failure, they are predisposed to one of these positions. Suppose you apply for a job,…

— Barry Schwartz

“Learning to choose is hard. Learning to choose well is harder. And learning to choose well in a world of unlimited possibilities…

— Barry Schwartz

Years of research in psychology has shown that rewards and punishments can be very effective in changing behavior. But, at the same…

— Barry Schwartz

“Most people can suppress counterfactual thoughts before they spin too far down a spiral, those who suffer from clinical depression may not…

— Barry Schwartz

“We give disproportionate weight to whether yogurt is said to be five percent fat or 95 percent fat free. People seem to…

— Barry Schwartz

Too little attention is paid to the dark side of incentives. They are anything but a magic bullet. Psychologists have known this…

— Barry Schwartz