I’ve spent the last few months mainlining Rory Sutherland. Who am I kidding, he’s responsible for my interest in behavioural science in comms ever since I saw him talk at Cannes Lions about a decade ago. I don’t know how many hours of podcasts and YouTube clips I’ve consumed, but my brain is buzzing, and I have a strange urge to buy a ridiculously loud shirt and start dressing like a slightly hungover president of a reputable English cricket club.
Note: I originally wrote about this on my old website but this list it bigger and better, and way more up to date.
Rory’s the Vice Chairman of Ogilvy UK, but more importantly, he’s the advertising world’s chief anthropologist and court jester, here to remind us that logic is a terrible guide to understanding humans.
This list is my attempt to organize the bender. It’s the ultimate starter pack for anyone who wants to escape the tyranny of the a Google rabbit hole and start making some real magic.
The Behavioral brainwash (books that will rewire your brain for the better)
This isn’t just a reading list. This is an epistemology. A toolkit for seeing the hidden wiring of human decision-making.
Thinking Fast and Slow by Daniel Kahneman
The bible. Rory considers it the holy grail for understanding how our minds actually work, not how economists wish they worked. If you read nothing else, he says, at least read Kahneman’s Nobel Prize acceptance speech. But seriously, just read the fucking book.
Predictably Irrational by Dan Ariely
This is the practical follow-up. Ariely shows that our so-called “irrationality” isn’t a random bug, it’s a predictable feature. It follows patterns. Patterns you can spot, understand, and design for. It’s a game-changer.
Nudge by Richard Thaler and Cass Sunstein
A “tremendous book.” Rory loves it because it’s about becoming a “choice architect.” It teaches you how tiny, almost invisible changes in context can create huge behavioral shifts–without mandates or expensive campaigns. It’s marketing judo.
Misbehaving: The Making of Behavioral Economics by Richard Thaler
The origin story and a hilarious and brilliant journey of dragging mainstream economics, kicking and screaming, to the realization that humans aren’t emotionless robots optimizing a spreadsheet. It’s essential for anyone who feels like their job is at odds with human nature.
The Rational Animal by Douglas Kenrick
This one explores how evolution wired us to be a lot smarter than our conscious, “rational” brains give us credit for. Our deep-seated instincts are often doing the heavy lifting.
Basic Instincts, Human Nature and the New Economics by Pete Lunn
An Irish perspective on behavioral economics that offers a fresh, witty take on the whole field. Featured in Rory’s essential “Books that make you think differently” video.
Risk Savvy by Gerd Gigerenzer
A “wonderful book” that introduces a critical concept: “defensive decision-making.” People don’t just choose what’s best; they often choose what’s easiest to justify if it goes wrong. This explains about 125% of corporate behavior.
Poor Economics by Esther Duflo and Abhijit Banerjee
Rory loves this because it’s a masterclass in the power of small interventions. It proves that tiny, psychologically-attuned incentives can create massive behavioral change. It’s the dream: maximum impact for minimum spend.
Wanting by Luke Burgis
This book unpacks a mind-fuck of an idea: mimetic desire. We don’t really want things on our own. We want what other people want. It’s a contagious disease. Once you see it, you can’t unsee it. As Rory says, “I hope everybody else enjoys this book as much as I did.”
Pathological Altruism by Barbara Oakley
A brilliant spanner in the works for anyone who thinks “doing good” is simple. This book shows how well-intentioned acts can backfire spectacularly. It argues that altruism needs to be calibrated with a dose of cynical, second-order thinking, not just maximized blindly.
The marketing magic kit
Forget your slightly silly proprietary tools KPIs for a second. This is the real toolbox.
Common Sense Direct Marketing by Drayton Bird
Written by Rory’s first boss and “huge influence.” This isn’t theoretical bullshit; it’s a practical, get-your-hands-dirty guide from a direct marketing legend who taught Rory about what actually makes people pull out their wallets.
Spent by Geoffrey Miller
This is marketing with a side of evolutionary biology. Miller goes deep, exploring how our purchases are really just complex signaling mechanisms designed to show off our genetic fitness. It’s the hidden “why” behind consumerism.
Unreasonable Hospitality by Will Guidara
Rory champions this book constantly because it perfectly illustrates one of his core beliefs: the opposite of a good idea can also be a good idea. It’s a masterclass in how to build a business by focusing on the magic, not just the metrics.
Alchemy by Rory Sutherland
This is Rory’s own gospel. The core thesis of his entire worldview. It’s the grand argument for why illogical, irrational, and inefficient ideas are often the most brilliant. If you read only one book on this list, maybe make it this one. Or Kahneman. Fuck it, read both.
Confessions of an Advertising Man by David Ogilvy
Rory’s verdict is simple and absolute: “Love it. His best book.” Enough said. Essential reading from the original Mad Man.
Obvious Adams by Robert R. Updegraff
Another “superb business book” that tells a simple story about a man who succeeds by stating the blindingly obvious things that everyone else overlooks. A powerful lesson in not overcomplicating things.
$100M Offers by Alex Hormozi
A “truly excellent book” because it flips the script on value. It’s less about what you’re selling and more about creating an offer so god damn good, people feel stupid saying no.
Algorithms To Live By by Brian Christian
A “sensationally good book” that applies core concepts from computer science (like the explore/exploit trade-off) to everyday human life. It’s a new lens for making better decisions.
Obliquity by John Kay
Sutherland calls this “the best short read for businessfolk.” It champions the powerful, counter-intuitive idea that you often achieve your goals by not aiming directly at them. It’s a dagger to the heart of KPI-obsessed managers.
Traffic by Tom Vanderbilt
“Should be a set text in schools.” A brilliant look at how the seemingly simple act of driving reveals the complex, unwritten rules of human social psychology, negotiation, and game theory.
Zero to One by Peter Thiel
“An excellent book from someone who seems to understand what Fitzgerald called ‘the whole equation’ of a business.” Rory respects Thiel’s grasp of the complete picture, not just one slice of it.
Mind-expanding fiction
Because storytelling teaches you more about humans than a focus group ever will.
The Complete Sherlock Holmes by Arthur Conan Doyle
Rory thinks that detective fiction isn’t just entertainment; it’s a training manual for how to have an insight. Holmes teaches you to observe, not just see, and to find the significance in the trivial details everyone else ignores. A crucial skill for any strategist.
The Clicking of Cuthbert by P.G. Wodehouse
Rory has apparently read this short story more than 30 times. He calls it “the most perfect work of artistic creation in the history of the world.” Yes, he actually claims it’s better than the Sistine Chapel. You should probably read it. It’s very funny.
Unexpected wisdom
The best ideas often come from the weirdest places.
Winston Churchill’s Ministry of Ungentlemanly Warfare
Described by Sutherland as “the most Rory book” he’d read in a year. It’s all about winning a war with creative absurdity, psychological tricks, and wild schemes that make no logical sense but worked brilliantly. Sound familiar?
How to Solve It by George Polya
Polya’s four-step method is great, but the killer insight Rory loves is this: spending more time understanding the problem is more valuable than rushing to a solution. A game-changer for anyone in a creative field.
When More Is Not Better by Roger L. Martin
An “excellent book” that throws a bomb at America’s obsession with efficiency above all else. It argues that resilience and slack are more important than optimization–a message straight from the Sutherland playbook.
Screen time that’s actually worth it
Jay Leno’s Garage (especially “Why I Don’t Own a Ferrari”)
A perfect real-world example of rejecting the “obvious” status game. Leno rejects the bullshit and hassle of owning a Ferrari not because he can’t afford one, but because it’s an objectively worse experience. He buys cars for joy, not to impress dicks.
Fawlty Towers
Beyond being painfully funny, it’s a masterclass in cultural nuance, communication breakdown, and the psychology of a man constantly on the verge of a nervous breakdown. My Dad reccomends this too, for what it’s worth…
“Books that make you think differently” YouTube video
If you do nothing else, watch this. It’s a 17-minute download directly from Rory’s brain as he walks you through his favorites. It’s like getting a personal book club session with the man himself.
“Inside the mind of a marketing genius” – Great Company
A fresh, wide-ranging 2025 conversation that covers everything from the psychology of brand love to his recent, and somewhat baffling, TikTok fame.
Podcasts to fill your ears
Stop listening to generic business gurus. Listen to this instead.
The Knowledge Project with Shane Parrish
Shane Parrish is brilliant at deep dives, and his episodes with Rory are pure gold. They get right into the weeds of advertising psychology and mental models.
On Brand with ALF & Rory Sutherland
Co-hosted by Rory. It’s like being a fly on the wall as he and his friends dissect branding, advertising, and human silliness through a behavioral science lens.
Modern Wisdom Podcast
Rory joins Chris Williamson to unpack the hidden psychology behind what makes great advertising actually work.
Out of Hours
The episode “How To Stay Creative & Entrepreneurial in a Rational World” is fantastic. He talks about why he’d love to sell air conditioners (the context is everything) and his thoughts on AI.
Invest Like the Best with Patrick O’Shaughnessy
A must-listen. Rory explains why “spreadsheets and logic kill magic” and makes the case for pursuing psychological moonshots, not just technological ones.
You’re welcome…
✨//A