179. Sludge: What It Is and How to Reduce It, a Behavioral Economics Foundations Episode

<p><span style="font-weight: 400;">The internationally acclaimed book,</span> <em><span style="font-weight: 400;">Nudge,</span></em> <span style="font-weight: 400;">has shaped a lot of the field of behavioral economics. It has also spurred a whole other area which one of its co-authors, Cass Sunstein, has written a new book about, called</span> <em><span style= "font-weight: 400;">Sludge</span></em><span style= "font-weight: 400;">:</span> <em><span style= "font-weight: 400;">What Stops Us From Getting Things Done and What To Do About It</span></em><span style="font-weight: 400;">, which released in fall 2021. </span></p> <p><span style="font-weight: 400;">Sludge is everywhere in our lives. So what is it and how do we reduce it? This episode of The Brainy Business podcast is dedicated to all things sludge to help you identify and reduce it in your business. In this episode you will learn about: what sludge is and isn’t; a customer facing example of sludge; a back-office example of sludge; how to quantify sludge; and how to get others on your team on board with finding and removing sludge.</span></p> <p><span style="font-weight: 400;">No matter your size or industry, I guarantee sludge is a problem in your business. Find it, remove it, and enjoy the benefits. Listen to learn more about sludge...</span></p> <p><span style="font-weight: 400;">Show Notes:</span></p> <ul> <li><span style="font-weight: 400;">[00:06] Today’s behavioral economics foundations episode is all about sludge.</span></li> <li><span style="font-weight: 400;">[02:23] Context and the way choices are presented make a huge difference in what we find to be most appealing. When the choices are presented in a different order we might choose something else entirely.</span></li> <li><span style="font-weight: 400;">[03:32] When you use a tactic to influence choice, we call that a nudge.</span></li> <li><span style="font-weight: 400;">[05:45] “Sludge is built into the human condition, and we need to start to remove it, piece by piece.”</span></li> <li><spa