Charlotte Angel Connection Episode 097: Dan Ariely, Author, Founder, Investor

Today we welcome Dan Ariely to the Charlotte Angel Connection.  Dan is the Principal for Advanced Hindsight and Founder of Startup Lab at Duke University.  He is also Professor of Behavioral Economics at Duke University (Fuqua School of Business, Center for Cognitive Neuroscience, Department of Economics, School of Medicine).  Dan is also a Co-Founder, advisor and investor in numerous startups over the last decade.  Many of you have probably seen one of Dan’s TED Talks which are based on Predictably Irrational and some of his more recent books. I read Predictably Irrational in 2010 and became an instant fan of Dan’s works and continued to follow him over the year.  Having him on the podcast to talk about how his work is helping startups come through Startup Labs was a fantastic experience. As you’ll learn today, Dan studies how people act in the marketplace, as opposed to how they should or would if they were rational beings. The Center for Advanced Hindsight’s work is aimed at using behavioral insights to tackle challenging problems at home and abroad. Dan explains why they focus on financial and health care companies and their approach to teach behavior economics and behavior change.  He discusses how environmental methods impact technology. Listen to podcast and hear the examples on how they give people better tools. We discuss the information age and his explanation of less information is better. He explains how companies can get involved in the Startup Lab and how they select companies.  He speaks about investing in startups and the irrationality of founders and investors of startups.  We dive into the irrationality of both investing in and being a founder of a startup and he gives great example of how investing in early stage companies has to be about more than just the financial return. Dan believes that startups need to test their assumptions and he gives some examples of studies they have done at the Center for Advanced Hindsight. We discuss the life cycle of startups and established brands and the importance of innovation.  Stick around to the end of the podcast and listen to why Dan loves experiments AND why he encourages using the library. It’s a very enlightening podcast that you don’t want to miss!   William Bissett is the owner of and an Investment Advisor Representative of Portus Wealth Advisors, a Registered Investment Adviser. Registration does not imply a certain level of skill or training. Opinions expressed on this program do not necessarily reflect those of Portus Wealth Advisors. The topics discussed and opinions given are not intended to address the specific needs of any listener.  Portus Wealth Advisors does not offer legal or tax advice, listeners are encouraged to discuss their financial needs with the appropriate professional regarding your individual circumstance.  Investments described herein may be speculative and may involve a substantial risk of loss. Interests may be offered only to persons who qualify as accredited investors under applicable state and federal regulation or an eligible employee of the management company. There generally is no public market for the Interests. Prospective investors should particularly note that many factors affect performance, including changes in market conditions and interest rates, and other economic, political or financial developments. Past performance is not, and should not be construed as, indicative of future results.