We are very influenced by completely automatic things that we have no control over, and we don't know we're doing it.

Individual investors predictably flock to stocks in companies that are in the news.

If there is time to reflect, slowing down is likely to be a good idea.

One study found that people who just thought about watching their favorite movie actually raised their endorphin levels by 27 percent.

Doubting what you see is a very odd experience. And doubting what you remember is a little less odd than doubting what you see. But it's also a pretty odd experience, because some memories come with a very compelling sense of truth about them, and that happens to be the case even for memories that are not true.

Optimism is normal, but some fortunate people are more optimistic than the rest of us. If you are genetically endowed with an optimistic bias, you hardly need to be told that you are a lucky person - you already feel fortunate.

It doesn't take many observations to think you've spotted a trend, and it's probably not a trend at all.