Everything our bodies do— whether physical or mental— uses energy. Studies have found that many individuals seem to have a daily threshold for making decisions, and an extended period of decision-making can lead to cognitive exhaustion. So, what kinds of choices lead us to this state, and what can we do to fight fatigue? Explore the psychology o...

For when you need to stop biting your nails and just pick a direction.

Ruth Chang asks why some choices are so hard — and what that means for the human condition.

Social psychologist Emily Balcetis explores perception, motivation, goal-setting and decision-making from conscious and nonconscious levels.

With astronaut eyes and ethnographer curiosity, Tricia Wang helps corporations grow by discovering the unknown about their customers.

These talks reveal that some things are more within your grasp than you may think, especially if you ask.

Is it better to be lucky or good? Should we trust our gut feelings or rely on probabilities and careful analysis when making important decisions? In this quick talk, professional poker player Liv Boeree shares three strategies she's learned from the game and how we can apply them to real life.

Here's a talk that could literally change your life. Which career should I pursue? Should I break up -- or get married?! Where should I live? Big decisions like these can be agonizingly difficult. But that's because we think about them the wrong way, says philosopher Ruth Chang. She offers a powerful new framework for shaping who we truly are.

In business today, the need for innovation and rapid decision-making trumps yesterday's drive for efficiency. How does this influence what it means to be an effective leader? Charlene Li explains that it's less about control and more about empowerment: enabling employees to acquire the information they need, so they can make their own decisions.

Some advice and perspectives to keep in mind when your company's going through structural changes.

What does "normal behavior" look like? To find out, Read Montague is imaging thousands of brains at work.

"Intuition helps us see the big picture," says filmmaker and sustainability leader Hrund Gunnsteinsdóttir. Reflecting on her work at the UN, she outlines three ways innsæi (the Icelandic word for "intuition") can help humanity face our greatest existential threats — urging us to use our inner wisdom as a guide for essential change..

Unexpected change like an accident, an illness or a relationship that suddenly ends is inevitable -- and disorienting. With a heartfelt and optimistic take on life's curveballs, cognitive scientist Maya Shankar shares how these challenging moments can inspire transformation, offering three questions to ask when facing uncertainty, so you can let...

Imagine you're watching a runaway trolley barreling down the tracks, straight towards five workers. You happen to be standing next to a switch that will divert the trolley onto a second track. Here's the problem: that track has a worker on it, too — but just one. What do you do? Do you sacrifice one person to save five? Eleanor Nelsen details th...

Business is changing, and so should the way you work. Here's how to stay ahead of the new normal while motivating talent -- from fresh hires to your best and brightest -- to dream up the next big success for your company. (Curated in partnership with Upwork.)

As curator of mammals at Zoo Atlanta, Stephanie Braccini Slade can attest that animals, just like humans, need to make choices to feel in control of their lives. Slade shares the story of a troubled chimpanzee named Holly to explain how crafting opportunities for choice in an animal's environment can create positive behavioral outcomes and impro...

Kang Lee has devoted his career to understanding the development of social cognition and behavior.

One of Adam Grant’s guiding principles is to argue like he's right and listen like he's wrong.

In ten years, 40% of today's Fortune 500 companies on the S&P will be gone. Why? Mark Modesti argues it's because they fail to embrace trouble. A professional troublemaker and Customer Solutions Executive, Modesti uses examples from business, his personal life, and Abraham Lincoln to show why we need to embrace the trouble we ache to escape ...

In a world of endless reviews and options, it's easy to become paralyzed by indecision. Investor and writer Patrick McGinnis shares the dangers of "FOBO" -- the fear of better options -- and how to overcome it.

What if you knew what your coworkers really thought about you and what they were really like? Ray Dalio makes the business case for using radical transparency and algorithmic decision-making to create an idea meritocracy where people can speak up and say what they really think -- even calling out the boss is fair game. Learn more about how these...

After making a splash in the field of bioinformatics, Sebastian Wernicke moved on to the corporate sphere, where he motivates and manages multidimensional projects.

We face an endless string of choices, which leads us to feel anxiety, guilt and pangs of inadequacy that we are perhaps making the wrong ones. But philosopher Renata Salecl asks: Could individual choices be distracting us from something bigger—our power as social thinkers? A bold call for us to stop taking personal choice so seriously and focus ...

Paul Catchlove believes strongly in the power of reflection. Through every career he's held -- from priest to opera singer to senior management consultant -- he's benefitted from a habit of considering and analyzing his goals, needs and performance. Learn more about how a regular practice of reflection can improve your decision-making, career an...

Does collecting more data lead to better decision-making? Competitive, data-savvy companies like Amazon, Google and Netflix have learned that data analysis alone doesn't always produce optimum results. In this talk, data scientist Sebastian Wernicke breaks down what goes wrong when we make decisions based purely on data -- and suggests a brainie...

12 counterintuitive talks to flip your thinking on everything from shoes to aid organizations to the universe.

Julia Galef investigates how and why people change their minds.

UPS pilot Jared Hill and his wife had a dream to resettle in Uganda and help families – but it seemed downright foolish. After all, Hill had a good job, house expenses and three children, including one with special needs who was just starting to flourish in his new school. For Hill, like so many people, "no" was the obvious and easy answer, whil...

We make important decisions every day -- and we often rely on experts to help us decide. But, says economist Noreena Hertz, relying too much on experts can be limiting and even dangerous. She calls for us to start democratizing expertise -- to listen not only to "surgeons and CEOs, but also to shop staff."

We all want customized experiences and products -- but when faced with 700 options, consumers freeze up. With fascinating new research, Sheena Iyengar demonstrates how businesses (and others) can improve the experience of choosing.