Sendhil Mullainathan；Eldar Shafir

4.11061 learners

In *Scarcity*, behavioral economists Sendhil Mullainathan and Eldar Shafir unpack how feeling short on resources—whether time, money, or social connection—rewires our brains. When scarcity captures our attention, it delivers a "focus dividend": we zero in on urgent tasks with laser-like precision, boosting short-term productivity. But this narrow focus, called "tunneling," comes at a steep cost: we ignore critical long-term priorities, drain our mental "bandwidth" (cognitive and self-control abilities), and fall into cycles of borrowing that deepen future scarcity. The book uses real-world stories—from struggling sugarcane farmers to overworked hospital staff—to show how scarcity traps aren’t just about lack of resources, but about the mindset it creates. It also lays out practical strategies: building slack (buffer space) in schedules and budgets, adjusting default behaviors to avoid decision fatigue, and shifting important choices to times when bandwidth is abundant. Whether you’re juggling a tight deadline, stretching a paycheck, or feeling socially isolated, *Scarcity* reveals why you make the choices you do and how to break free from scarcity’s grip.

Wang Shi

3.8765 learners

Wang Shi’s *My Transformation* chronicles his extraordinary journey from a young truck driver navigating China’s Gobi Desert to a pioneering entrepreneur, world-class mountaineer, and lifelong learner. Overcoming a genetic predisposition to altitude sickness, he defied odds to summit Everest, facing near-death experiences that reshaped his views on physical limits and mental resilience. As founder of Vanke, he built a corporate legacy on uncompromising ethics—refusing bribes even when competitors gained an edge—and championed modern, transparent governance that outlasted his leadership. Later, at 60+, he traded boardrooms for Harvard and Cambridge classrooms, grappling with language barriers and academic rigor to redefine himself beyond business. His story also weaves in environmental advocacy, from leading corporate green initiatives to global climate summits, and profound reflections on life and death shaped by mountain perils and cross-cultural encounters. More than a memoir, it’s a testament to embracing change, confronting vulnerabilities, and living with purpose at every stage of life.

Douglas Rushkoff

4.1702 learners

In *Throwing Rocks at the Google Bus*, Douglas Rushkoff uses the 2013 protests against Google’s San Francisco shuttles as a vivid opening to unpack the failures of growth-obsessed capitalism. He reveals how the digital economy, once poised to democratize value distribution, has been hijacked by Wall Street to fuel speculative expansion—spawning platform monopolies, widening wealth gaps, and treating workers and local communities as disposable assets. Rushkoff dismantles the myth that endless growth is an inevitable economic law, tracing its origins to centuries-old extractive business models. He presents actionable, people-centered alternatives: shorter workweeks tied to productivity gains, worker-owned enterprises, universal basic income, and distributed economic systems that prioritize human needs over shareholder profits. Drawing on real-world examples from Utah’s 4-day workweek to Brazil’s LETS community currency system, the book makes a compelling case for reimagining capitalism to serve people, not just perpetual, hollow expansion.