Maria Konnikova is a shining light — with achievements in a wide range of fields. She's a New York Times bestselling author, a journalist, a psychologist, and a professional poker player. Her first book, "The Confidence Game," was a commercial hit and won the 2016 Robert P. Balles Prize in Critical Thinking. Her next book, "Mastermind: How to Think Like Sherlock Holmes," also received critical acclaim.
However, Maria's most notable work is "The Biggest Bluff." While researching for this book, she immersed herself in poker and became an international poker champion, earning over $300,000. This exciting journey adds a unique layer to her diverse career.
Additionally, Maria contributes to The New Yorker, where her work has earned her the 2019 Excellence in Science Journalism Award from the Society of Personality and Social Psychology, underscoring her skill in communicating complex ideas and engaging readers effectively.
No fictional character is more renowned for his powers of thought and observation than Sherlock Holmes. But is his extraordinary intellect merely a gift of fiction, or can we learn to cultivate these abilities ourselves, to improve our lives at work and at home? We Can, as Maria Konnikova shows us in this talk. Beginning with the “brain attic” – Holmes’s metaphor for how we store information and organize knowledge – she unpacks the mental strategies that lead to clearer thinking and deeper insights. Drawing on twenty-first-century neuroscience and psychology, this talk explores Holmes’s unique methods of ever-present mindfulness, astute observation, and logical deduction. In doing so, it shows how each of us, with some self-awareness and a little practice, can employ these same methods to sharpen our perceptions, solve difficult problems, and enhance our own creative powers.
Maria Konnikova, while researching her best-selling book "The Confidence Game," spent over three years with confidence artists and their victims, mastering the techniques of persuasion and deception. In her talk, Konnikova delves into the psychology behind cons and why even the smartest individuals fall for them. She offers insights on how to avoid these pitfalls without losing trust. Attendees will learn to identify and protect themselves against fraud in various aspects of life and will gain tools to become more effective and confident persuaders, using the techniques of con artists for positive influence.
In this talk, Maria Konnikova combines her personal experience as a champion poker player with her original research into the psychology of human decision-making to explore how we can all learn to make better decisions in every aspect of our lives – from the negotiating table to our personal relationships. How can we think probabilistically, manage our emotions, evaluate risk, distinguish the noise of chance from the elements of control, learn when to go all in, and when to fold? Journey With Konnikova into some of the deepest crevices of the human mind, and emerge with a roadmap for how you can – immediately and practically – become a clearer thinker and more optimal decision maker in all areas of your life.
