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Patrick Brown asked this question about Thinking, Fast and Slow:
What are the three most vital takeaways from this book and why are they so important?
Tom Gosh, where to start? Here are some from memory, most without the proper terminology from the book.

1) Just how much System #1 affects our thinking and…moreGosh, where to start? Here are some from memory, most without the proper terminology from the book.

1) Just how much System #1 affects our thinking and decisions, without our knowledge, without our asking it to, without us wanting it to. We need to deal with the fact that a random number spun before answering a question *will* affect our answer to that question, no matter how stupid that seems. Understanding system #1, and training system #2 to be on its guard, is the most important takeaway.

2) How much loss aversion, and its opposite, desire of certainty, affect our decisions. I am not that sure its a bad thing - I know I will pay a premium for certainty, but it it worth it. Tying it to regret and blame is useful info.

3) Our tendency to overestimate the reliability of our decisions because we do not regress to the mean. Our thoughts and decisions may be in the right direction, but we will be overconfident in them unless we think "slow" on them.

4) Along the same lines, certain things - financial predictions, political pundits, lots of other things - are incapable of accurate prediction, by their nature (too much is unknown or hasn't happened yet). That may be obvious to some; what is most useful is realizing the true danger is the false *confidence of the predictors*.

5) And maybe just because I read this part recently: the differences between single decisions and linked decisions: how we can end up changing our mind on a decision once we made it, and how a gamble may be undesirable once, but desirable if repeated multiple times.

There are many, many more. Read it, then make the decision to read it again.(less)
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Thinking, Fast and Slow
by Daniel Kahneman
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