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James Surowiecki

James Surowiecki Quotes

Journalist

James Surowiecki is a renowned journalist and author, born in 1967. He is known for his insightful analysis of economic and social issues, particularly for his ability to translate complex economic theories into easily understandable content.

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Famous James Surowiecki Quotes

“Procrastination also can be a way of self-handicapping: if you don't do a great job, you can always say to yourself, "If I'd only started sooner, I'd have been able to produce something excellent."”

Ifs Way Has Beens Self Able Jobs Produce Excellent Procrastination Great Job

Author:James Surowiecki

“There are lots of people who believe there may be at least some genetic component to procrastination, and even if there isn't, it seems to be the case that procrastination habits are often set relatively early in life (that's certainly the case with me). But I also think that there's lots of evidence that external tools can help quite a bit in getting people to stop procrastinating.”

People Ifs Thinking Believe May Helping Seems Bits Cases Habit Evidence Tools Procrastination Components Procrastinating

Author:James Surowiecki

“In effect, dividing your attention means that neither (or none) of the things you're working on is really getting the full effect of your intelligence, and that it in the end takes you longer than it would if you did one thing at a time.”

Ifs Mean Ends Attention One Thing Effects Dividing One Thing At A Time

Author:James Surowiecki

“I do think that procrastination evolved in humans for good reasons. If you're trying to stay alive as a human being on the savanna 20,000 years ago, worrying about what's right behind that bush is a lot more important than worrying about what might happen three weeks from now.”

Ifs Thinking Trying Years Humans Important Reason Might Happens Three Human Beings Behinds Worry Alive Week Years Ago Procrastination Staying Alive Savanna

Author:James Surowiecki

“If army ants are wandering around and they get lost, they start to follow a simple rule:Just do what the ant in front of you does. The ants eventually end up in a circle. There's this famous example of one that was 1,200 feet long and lasted for two days; the ants just kept marching around and around in a circle until they died.”

Ifs Long Doe Two Ends Lost Simple Feet Fronts Example Army Died Circles Wander Ants Two Days Wandering Around

Author:James Surowiecki

“If being the biggest company was a guarantee of success, we'd all be using IBM computers and driving GM cars.”

Ifs Company Car Computer Driving Guarantees Ibm

Author:James Surowiecki

“If companies tell us more, insider trading will be worth less.”

Ifs Company Trading Insiders Insider Trading

Author:James Surowiecki

“If private-equity firms are as good at remaking companies as they claim, they don't need tax loopholes to make money.”

Ifs Needs Company Taxes Claims Making Money Firm Equity Loopholes Private Equity

Author:James Surowiecki

“Steve Jobs was rare: a C.E.O. who actually had a huge impact on his company's fortunes. Contrary to corporate mythology, most C.E.O.s could be easily replaced, if not by your average Joe, then by your average executive vice-president. But Jobs genuinely earned the label of superstar.”

Ifs Jobs President Company Huge Impact Fortune Average Vices Contrary Mythology Labels Corporate Executives Replaced Vice President Superstar Average Joe

Author:James Surowiecki

“A consumer-finance agency is a good thing, but it would do well to teach consumers a simple lesson: if you don't understand the deal you're making, don't make it.”

Ifs Wells Simple Deals Teach Lessons Good Things Finance Consumers Agency

Author:James Surowiecki

“Businesses that have gone through an episode of hyperinflation become understandably alert to the threat of it: at the first hint of inflation, they're likely to increase prices, since they've learned that if they don't, and inflation hits, their businesses will be wrecked.”

Ifs Firsts Gone Increase Threat Episodes Inflation Hints Hyperinflation

Author:James Surowiecki

“Campaigns fail if they waste resources courting voters who are unpersuadable or already persuaded. Their most urgent task is to find and persuade the few voters who are genuinely undecided and the larger number who are favorably disposed but need a push to actually vote.”

Ifs Needs Numbers Failing Waste Resources Tasks Vote Campaigns Voters Urgent Undecided

Author:James Surowiecki

“If someone really wants my company's business, why shouldn't he be able to do everything he can - including paying me off - to get that business? Because bribery encourages people to make decisions based on the wrong criteria, which means in the business world that it distorts the efficient allocation of resources.”

People Ifs World Want Mean Able Decision Company Resources Including Efficient Criteria Business World Bribery Allocation

Author:James Surowiecki

“If we want our regulators to do better, we have to embrace a simple idea: regulation isn't an obstacle to thriving free markets; it's a vital part of them.”

Ifs Want Ideas Simple Embrace Obstacles Regulation Free Market Regulators Simple Ideas

Author:James Surowiecki

“If you thought the advent of the Internet, the spread of cheap and efficient information technology, and the growing fragmentation of the consumer market were all going to help smaller companies thrive at the expense of the slow-moving giants of the Fortune 500, apparently you were wrong.”

Ifs Helping Moving Company Technology Growing Information Internet Fortune Spread Consumers Giants Thrive Expenses Efficient Information Technology Advent Fragmentation

Author:James Surowiecki

“If you work for Google or Apple, stock options give you a chance to share in the increasing value of the company. In the N.F.L., nothing like this happens; the players, though rich, are just working stiffs like the rest of us.”

Ifs Giving Happens Values Chance Company Rich Player Share Apples Google Stock Options

Author:James Surowiecki

“In industries where a lot of competitors are selling the same product - mangoes, gasoline, DVD players - price is the easiest way to distinguish yourself. The hope is that if you cut prices enough you can increase your market share, and even your profits. But this works only if your competitors won't, or can't, follow suit.”

Ifs Way Enough Cutting Player Share Products Industry Increase Profit Selling Suits Competitors Dvds Gasoline

Author:James Surowiecki

“In the auto industry, there's one thing you can always count on: if a new environmental or safety rule is proposed, executives will prophesy disaster.”

Ifs One Thing Industry Safety Environmental Disaster Executives Auto Industry

Author:James Surowiecki

“Intellectual-property rules are clearly necessary to spur innovation: if every invention could be stolen, or every new drug immediately copied, few people would invest in innovation. But too much protection can strangle competition and can limit what economists call 'incremental innovation' - innovations that build, in some way, on others.”

People Ifs Way Too Much Drug Limits Intellectual Innovation Competition Property Protection Invention Economist Stolen Spurs Intellectual Property

Author:James Surowiecki

“Now, modern economies have a very effective mechanism for deciding if salaries are really too high: it's called the free market. That's how most people's salaries are set, after all, including those of major-league baseball players and European soccer players.”

People Ifs Economy Player Modern Majors Baseball Including Soccer League Mechanism Free Market Salary Baseball Player Major League Soccer Player Major League Baseball

Author:James Surowiecki

“Of course, looking tough on inflation is part of any central banker's job description: if investors believe that inflation is going to get out of control, you end up with higher interest rates and capital flight, and a vicious circle quickly ensues.”

Ifs Believe Ends Jobs Courses Interest Higher Tough Rate Circles Flight Description Investors Vicious Inflation Bankers Interest Rate Vicious Circles

Author:James Surowiecki

“Of course, politicians always say they're just describing their opponents' positions, even if they are in fact offering absurd caricatures, if not outright lies.”

Ifs Facts Lying Courses Position Politician Absurd Opponents Offering Describing Caricatures

Author:James Surowiecki

“To be sure, if you watch CNBC all day long you'll pick up some interesting news about particular companies and the economy as a whole. Unfortunately, to get to the useful information, you have to wade through reams of useless stuff, with little guidance on how to distinguish between the two.”

Ifs Littles Long Two Whole Stuff Interesting Company Watches Economy Information Particular News Picks Useless Guidance Wade Some Interesting Useful Information Useless Stuff

Author:James Surowiecki

“Workers who come to the U.S. see their wages and their standard of living boosted sharply simply by crossing the border. That's a good thing, and one of the best arguments for immigration reform, even if you'll rarely hear a politician make it.”

Ifs Politician Standards Argument Good Things Workers Immigration Reform Borders Wages Crossings Standards Of Living Immigration Reform

Author:James Surowiecki

“You might think of consumption as a fairly passive activity, but buying new products and services is actually pretty risky, at least if you value your time and money.”

Ifs Thinking Might Values Products Activity Buying Passive Consumption Time And Money New Products

Author:James Surowiecki

“If small groups are included in the decision-making process, then they should be allowed to make decisions. If an organization sets up teams and then uses them for purely advisory purposes, it loses the true advantage that a team has: namely, collective wisdom.”

Ifs Should Use Wisdom Purpose Process Loses Decision Groups Team Advantage Organization Collectives Decision Making Small Groups Decision Making Process Advisory Collective Wisdom

Book:The Wisdom of Crowds

Source: The Wisdom of Crowds

“But, if recent history has taught us anything, it’s that self-regulation doesn’t work in finance, and that worries about reputation are a weak deterrent to corporate malfeasance.”

Ifs Self Worry Taught Weak Reputation Finance Corporate Regulation Taught Us Self Regulation Deterrent Malfeasance

Author:James Surowiecki

“The fact that cognitive diversity matters does not mean that if you assemble a group of diverse but thoroughly uninformed people, their collective wisdom will be smarter than an expert's. But if you can assemble a diverse group of people who possess varying degrees of knowledge and insight, you're better off entrusting it with major decisions rather than leaving them in the hands of one or two people, no matter how smart those people are.”

Source: The Wisdom of Crowds

About the Author

Born: 1967
Known for: Journalist
Quotes: 173

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