Strategic Thinking - Strategic Competition in Business, Politics, and Daily Life

Author: Avinash K. Dixit [USA]
Publisher:
Publishing Date: Not available
Features: Life is a continuous process of decision-making. What kind of job to take, how to manage a business, whom to marry, how to raise children, whether to compete for the position of CEO—all are examples of such decisions. You are not making decisions in a vacuum. Instead, you are surrounded by other decision-makers like yourself. Although there is a lot of conflict, there are also many elements of cooperation. This book will help you learn to think strategically and increase your chances of winning in the game of life. It succeeds through storytelling. Its academic foundation lies in the "Strategic Games" course taught by Professor Dixit at the Woodrow Wilson School of Public and International Affairs at Princeton University. In short, it is the art of understanding how your opponents intend to defeat you and then defeating them. How to win a tennis match, how a minority can defeat a majority, why you should "love" your opponent youdislike—these are some of the topics discussed. This is a new field of strategic science, composed of simple basic principles. Readers from different backgrounds and industries who master these principles will see their ability to strategize and achieve victory reach a new level. The work of Nobel laureate in Economics, Professor Nate K. Johnson, and Princeton Professor John H. Conant, shows readers without an economics background the principles of game theory strategic thinking through vivid examples. Take an example: When Professor Johnson graduated from college, he joined a gambling game at a formal dance in Cambridge and led with a massive 700:300 advantage. With the prize within reach, he inexplicably ignored his advantage and, in the final round, played too boldly, only to fail. Later, he recalled that he had drunk too much and forgot the lesson of game theory: when in the lead, adopt a conservative strategy of allowing the opponent to move first. This top game theory expert thus lost to a woman who was originally in second place and had previously suggested sharing the reward (see Chapter 1 of this book).
Life is a continuous process of decision-making. What kind of job to take, how to manage a business, whom to marry, how to raise children, whether to compete for the position of CEO—all are examples of such decisions. You are not making decisions in a vacuum. Instead, you are surrounded by other decision-makers like yourself. Although there is a lot of conflict, there are also many elements of cooperation. This book will help you learn to think strategically and increase your chances of winning in the game of life. It succeeds through storytelling. Its academic foundation lies in the "Strategic Games" course taught by Professor Dixit at the Woodrow Wilson School of Public and International Affairs at Princeton University. In short, it is the art of understanding how your opponents intend to defeat you and then defeating them. How to win a tennis match, how a minority can defeat a majority, why you should "love" your opponent youdislike—these are some of the topics discussed.