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The Brilliant Reason Inigo Montoya Fought Left-Handed.

“I know something you don’t know," laughs Inigo Montoya. "I am not left-handed.” The Princess Bridge implies that Inigo's arrogance led him to begin fighting a battle-to-the-death with his weaker arm. Learn why it was actually a brilliant strategic choice. Read more →

Busting Assumptions about Crocodiles

The Nile crocodile is a dangerous beast. Descended from dinosaurs, it can grow over 20 feet long and is responsible for the deaths of nearly 200 people every year. But the Nile crocodile is also a prime example about why you can't make assumptions about how people think! Read more →

One benefit to rule them all.

When people like an idea, they want others to like it as well. The natural response is to benefit-load an idea so that consumers can't do anything BUT love it. The problem is, benefit-loading always backfires. Instead, you need to choose one single, compelling reason for people to like your idea. Read more →

How a USB charger can save the lives of millions.

In the developing world, cooking is a major health issue - and not for the reason you think. Despite all the advances in technology, nearly 200 million people in India and China still make their daily meals over ineffient wood stoves or open fires. This method of cooking emits large amounts of smoke, gas and carbon, polluting the air and poisoning the people who use them. The World Health Organization estimates that 2 million worldwide die every year from the smoke generated by cooking and heating. The resulting indoor air pollution causes respiratory issues, lung disease and pneumonia, and contributes... Read more →

Busting assumptions about preventing teen pregnancy.

What assumptions are you making without even knowing it? Are those assumptions preventing you from seeing real solutions to your challenges? Critics claimed that TV shows like "16 and Pregnant” glorified teen pregnancy, but Big Data shows that their assumptions were wrong. Read more →

Compelling new evidence for why innovators should target only one customer at a time.

Recently I wrote about why it's essential for innovators to go by the motto "less is more" when they're promoting an idea. Turns out that "less is more" when deciding who to promote your idea to as well! The Journal of Consumer Research just published a fascinating article titled Overindividuation in Gift Giving: Shopping for Multiple Recipients Leads Givers to Choose Unique but Less Preferred Gifts. It's about how just thinking about giving gifts to more than one person negatively affects the gift-giver's ability to understand what the recipients really want. When you're promoting an idea, you need to think... Read more →