Prudent decision making in an imprudent world : better decisions at home and work / Patrick F. Gould.

Includes bibliographical references and index.

The prudent decision maker living among irrational conservatives -- Prudent decision makers seek a balanced perspective -- Prudent decision makers are self-disciplined -- Prudent decision makers are not all former valedictorians -- Prudent decision makers are students of history -- Prudent decision makers never violate the principle of security -- Prudent decision makers are cultural contrarians -- Prudent decision makers seek informational clarity and relevance -- Prudent decision makers never sweat the small stuff -- Prudent decision makers possess humility and temperance -- Prudent decision makers understand that no decision is still a decision -- Prudent decision makers are creative -- Prudent decision making in education -- Prudent decision makers know that while money does not buy happiness, neither does happiness buy money -- Prudent decision makers learn the cost of every free lunch -- Semper paratus : the always-ready, financially prudent decision maker -- Prudent decision makers are epistemological optimists.

Combining clearly communicated research-based principles, a wealth of practical advice, and dozens of historic and contemporary examples of decision making (good and bad), Patrick Gould's Prudent Decision Making in an Imprudent World: Better Decisions at Home and Work gives readers a fresh new way to look at the way we make choices. What makes Gould's book both authoritative and compelling is its distinctive foundation, prospect theory, derived from Amos Tversky and Nobel laureate Daniel Kahneman's landmark research on "euro-economic" decision making. Through the prism of prospect theory -- which explains why people make conservative decisions in some instances and reckless decisions in others -- Gould provides practical pathways to sound, timely judgments about relationships, family matters, careers, finances, and more. Time and again, throughout this concise but richly rewarding book, Gould demonstrates that understanding how and why people make choices is the first step toward making the best possible choices for ourselves. - Publisher.