The art of the good life : clear thinking for business and a better life / Rolf Dobelli ; Translated from the German by Caroline Waight

Includes foreword, afterword, acknowledgements, appendix and notes.

Foreword -- 1. Mental accounting -- 2. The fine art of correction -- 3. The pledge -- 4. Black box thinking -- 5. Counterproductivity -- 6. The negative art of the good life -- 7. The ovarian lottery -- 8. The introspection illusion -- 9. The authenticity trap -- 10 The five-second no -- 11 The focusing illusion -- 12. The things you buy leave no real trace -- 13. Fuck-you money -- 14. The circle of competence -- 15. The secret of persistence -- 16. The tyranny of a calling -- 17. The prison of a good reputation -- 18. The "End of History" illusion -- 19. The smaller meaning of life 20. Your two selves -- 21. The memory bank -- 22. Life stories are lies -- 23. The "Good Death" fallacy -- 24. The spiral of self-pity -- 25. Hedonism and eudemonia -- 26. The circle of dignity - Part I -- 27. The circle of dignity - Part II -- 28. The circle of dignity - Part II -- 29. The book of worries -- 30. The opinion volcano -- 31. Your mental fortress -- 32. Envy -- 33. Prevention -- 34. Mental relief work -- 35. The focus trap -- 36. Read less, but twice - on principle -- 37. The dogma trap -- 38. Mental subtraction -- 39. The point of maximum deliberation -- 40. Other people's shoes -- 41. The illusion of changing the world - Part I -- 42. The illusion of changing the world - Part II -- 43. The "Just World" fallacy -- 44. Cargo cults -- 45. If you run your own race, you can't lose -- 46. The arms race -- 47. Making friends with weirdos -- 48. The secretary problem -- 49. Managing expectations -- 50. Surgeon's law -- 51. In praise of modesty -- 52. Inner success -- Afterword -- Acknowledgement --Appendix --Notes

The indispensable new work from the author of the international and Sunday Times bestseller The Art of Thinking Clearly Have you ever... * Spent too long on a powerpoint presentation? * Lost sight of what makes you happy? * Failed to reach a long-term goal? * Become infuriated by queuing, tax or parking tickets? * Broken a promise you knew you'd keep? Since the dawn of civilization, we've been asking ourselves what it means to live a good life: how should I live, what will truly make be happy, how much should I earn, how should I spend my time? In the absence of a single simple answer, what we need is a toolkit of mental models, a guide to practical living. In The Art of the Good Life, you'll find fifty-two intellectual shortcuts for wiser thinking and better decisions, at home and at work. They may not guarantee you a good life, but they'll give you a better chance.