Book Report - Thinking, Fast and Slow

Book Report:  Thinking, Fast and Slow

General overview:

This book is an awesome read.  It opens someone up regarding many perceptions people have.  It basically shows how a person is prone to making decisions and/or assume too quickly without giving yourself enough time to process them thoroughly.  The author has tons of examples listed throughout the entire book.  The examples that I see that tie into the class are the “halo effect” and “associated memory”. 

Basically if I could sum this entire book up I would say it showed me my flaws regarding how I think too fast.  I also make decisions without properly digesting what’s presented to me.  I need to think slower, and definitely not to jump to conclusions.  I think others can see what a little extra time in thought can do.  People assume certain things automatically without even knowing they did it. 

Favorite part of book/why you like it/how it relates to the class:

Chapter 32/Keeping Score/Regret (page 346-349)

In the first paragraph “Regret is an emotion, and it is also a punishment that we administer to ourselves” is very powerful.  It is my favorite part of the book because of my personal circumstances going on in my life right now.  I chose this because I am currently going through a long, drawn out divorce.  What I mean is I initially didn’t file for a divorce because of the fear of regretting it.  To make a long story short I didn’t want to make a decision for divorce and regret it.  I was fearful of the unknown.  I am currently now 11 months into a divorce and we still cohabitate.  The fear of regret is what controlled me to not file initially.  I am so glad I filed because I am totally able to breath and enjoy life even though it’s not final yet.  This relates to the class because regret is a psychological perspective that can stop oneself to better themselves in life.   Regret is a powerful emotion that can hold someone down from their full potential in life.  Everyone is familiar with regret and all avoid making decisions because of regret.  The ultimate thing is that humans are terrible at knowing how bad those feelings of regret can be.