The Power of Bad cover art

The Power of Bad

And How to Overcome It

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The Power of Bad

By: John Tierney, Roy F. Baumeister
Narrated by: Paul Bellantoni
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About this listen

Brought to you by Penguin.

From the international bestselling authors of Willpower

Why does a bad impression last longer than a good one? Why does losing money affect us more than gaining it? What makes phobias so hard to shake?

The answer is the negativity bias - or in other words, the power of bad. As John Tierney and Roy F. Baumeister show, we are wired to react to bad over good. It makes sense in evolutionary terms, but in our modern world the lure of bad is, well, bad. It governs people's moods, drives marketing and dominates our news. It can explain everything from why wars start or couples divorce, to why we mess up job interviews or feud with neighbours.

But there is good news. By using smart strategies from new science, we can train our brains to get better at spotting our own negativity bias, fighting back with our rational minds to manage the bad in our lives - and even using its power for positive results.

Breaking bad's hold over us can help our own lives, at work and in our relationships. Properly understood, bad can be a good thing.

 Career Success Motivation & Self-Improvement Personal Development Personal Success Psychology Psychology & Mental Health Science Social Sciences Career Inspiring Health Human Brain

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Critic reviews

Illuminating
Tierney and Baumeister argue their case forcefully and well, and supply vast quantities of evidence in its favour
All stars
Most relevant
Loved this journey through the reasons for, and ramifications of the negativity effect. Fascinating insights to help us understand why it can seem like the whole world is going to hell, plus practical, reassuring advice for how to counter this, both personally and societally.

Brilliant, positive, reassuring

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Interesting book, it encourages you to take a step back and consider what 'bad' is.

interesting book,

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Good book, though I will need to read once more to understand and reflect on all research and concepts...

Important, though difficult to grasph all

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