Books like You are now less dumb

A witty, humbling tour through the funhouse mirror of your own mind that proves you aren't nearly as rational as you think. These 12 books are the closest matches in mood, pace and themes, with what each one shares with You are now less dumb.

mind-expanding
playful
humbling
curious

01
You are not so smart
David McRaney
A playful, humbling tour through the cognitive biases that secretly run your life, proving that you are delightfully, predictably irrational.
Shares:
- playful
- humbling
- wry
- conversational
02
The elephant in the brain
Kevin Simler and Robin Hanson
A cheerful but ruthless dismantling of every noble motive you thought you had.
Shares:
- wry
- self-deception
03
The Intelligence Trap
David Robson
A humbling and illuminating exploration of why brilliant minds make foolish mistakes, and how to cultivate the intellectual humility needed to avoid them.
Shares:
- humbling
- curious
- wry
- cognitive bias
04
Why smart people do dumb things
Mortimer R. Feinberg · 1995
An accessible, psychological exploration of the cognitive blind spots that trip up even the sharpest minds.
Feels:
- thought-provoking
- grounding
- inquisitive
05
Perfectly irrational
Dan Ariely
A playful, eye-opening tour through the hidden quirks and cognitive blind spots that secretly run our lives.
Shares:
- curious
- wry
- conversational
- human fallibility
06
59 seconds
Richard Wiseman · 2010
A brisk, science-backed antidote to toxic positivity that offers bite-sized psychological hacks for everyday life.
Shares:
- curious
- wry
07
The art of thinking clearly
Rolf Dobelli
A brisk, humbling, and ultimately empowering field guide to outsmarting your own irrational brain.
Shares:
- wry
- human fallibility
08
Idiot brain
Dean Burnett
A hilarious, forgiving tour through the messy, glitchy, and utterly fascinating hardware inside your skull.
Shares:
- curious
- wry
- informative
- human fallibility
09
Predictably Irrational
Dan Ariely
A playful, eye-opening tour through the hidden forces that secretly pull the strings of our daily decisions.
Shares:
- playful
- conversational
- human fallibility
10
Scout Mindset
Julia Galef
A refreshing, clear-eyed guide to dropping your intellectual defenses and learning to see the world as it actually is.
Shares:
- conversational
11
Calling Bullshit
Carl T. Bergstrom and Jevin D. West
A witty, empowering toolkit for cutting through the noise of a data-drenched world.
Shares:
- wry
- irreverent
12
Barking Up the Wrong Tree
Eric Barker
A paradigm-shifting exploration of the psychological realities behind what actually drives achievement.
Shares:
- curious
- informative

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