I started college 51 years ago. I earned some degrees and over the years went back and took a number of non-credit courses. I enjoy the learning process and I’m positive that this is one major key to my success as a gambler and instructor.
There’s a new way to learn, called MOOC, which stands for Massively Open Online Courses. A year ago I heard about a free MOOC course offered by Dan Ariely of Duke University called “A Beginner’s Guide to Irrational Behavior.” I was too busy to take the course, I concluded, and so I skipped it. 140,000 students found time to take it. To me that’s a startling number.
When the opportunity arose again this year, I signed up. If you’re reading this column as it is first published, the new course begins today, March 11, although you have a few days after that to sign up if you wish. Sign up at www.coursera.org
I have already read Dan Ariely’s three books, Predictably Irrational, The Upside of Irrationality, and The (Honest) Truth About Dishonesty. I have written about all three of them on this site. It’s fair to say I’m a big fan of his. If you’ve never heard of him, check out one of his TED talks. There are a number of them you can Google but the first one I saw that led me to start reading his books was this one. As you will see, the guy could make it as a standup comedian and just listening teaches you something interesting.
How free is the course? In this case, “free” means someone else is paying for it. They recommend you buy a bundle of his books. The Kindle version is $19.95. You can get the same bundle in a few other electronic formats as well for a similar price. That price shouldn’t hold anybody back. Obviously, the students who get the most out of the course will actually READ some or all of the books over the 8 week semester. That will take some time.
I actually debated whether I had the time. In addition to my “regular” activities of gambling, teaching, writing, radio show, and square dancing — all of which take more time to prepare for than to actually perform — there’s a whole bunch of “irregular” one-time-only activities that I’m doing this year. In my case, we’re building a major addition onto Bonnie’s house, I’m moving in, we’re getting married in May, and we’re going on a 4-week honeymoon immediately thereafter. These things take time to prepare for as well. And however much I think I need to prepare, there’s a whole additional level of preparation that Bonnie will want me to do. (For example, a lot of my stuff has been in storage. Once I move it in, she’s actually going to insist that I unpack and organize my stuff. Can you imagine!)
Still, there have ALWAYS been things going on in my life. I have no idea what irregular things will be going on in my life a year from now, but there’s no reason to assume that I’ll have any more free time then than I have now. (And if I do, I’ll probably sign up for another MOOC or two!) So I’m jumping in and taking the class now.
I invite you to join me. In no way am I being compensated for this recommendation (well, I do receive a minor amount of compensation for writing this article — but I have other articles already written and so I’m not desperate for a subject). I guarantee you that I’ve made profitable changes to the way I gamble, the way I teach, and the way I write based on what I’ve already read from Dan Ariely. I’m expecting more of that in this course.
I’m pretty sure most of my readers would benefit as well. Even if you can bring yourself to sign up for a college class, check out his TED talks. You’ll be glad you did. Even if you don’t have the time or inclination to do all the reading, just listening to his lectures is time very well spent.