Faced with a time shortage, we squeeze tasks into the nooks and crannies of our calendar, leaving less and less time to switch between them. As a result, we become less and less productive exactly when we need to be most productive. Sendhil Mullainathan More Quotes by Sendhil Mullainathan More Quotes From Sendhil Mullainathan There's a popular image of people who don't save for the future as lacking in self-control. But the reason saving is so hard has less to do with self-control and more to do with a scarcity of attention. Sendhil Mullainathan image future attention people If you have urgent current expenses to cover, then future priorities like college and retirement fall off your radar because they are simply less pressing. Scarcity of attention prevents us from seeing what's really important. The psychology of scarcity engrosses us in only our present needs. Sendhil Mullainathan you future important fall It is safe to say that when people are short on cash, they might be less productive at work, be worse parents, and have less self-control. Sendhil Mullainathan short parents work people Economists specialize in pointing out unpleasant trade-offs - a skill that is on full display in the health care debate. We want patients to receive the best care available. We also want consumers to pay less. And we don't want to bankrupt the government or private insurers. Something must give. Sendhil Mullainathan best care health government A few drugs - such as beta-blockers, statins and glycogen control medications - have proved very effective at managing hypertension, heart disease, diabetes and strokes. Most insurance plans charge something for them. Why not make drugs like these free? Not for everyone, but just the groups for whom they are provably effective. Sendhil Mullainathan control free diabetes heart I worry about growing income inequality. But I worry even more that the discussion is too narrowly focused. I worry that our outrage at the top 1 percent is distracting us from the problem that we should really care about: how to create opportunities and ensure a reasonable standard of living for the bottom 20 percent. Sendhil Mullainathan inequality care problem worry Our outrage at inequality is primal. But primal emotions are not always noble ones. Of course, when I see a colleague receive some award, I covet it. But this is not me at my best, and these are not the feelings we would instill and promote in our children. Sendhil Mullainathan award best me children We should try to ensure that everyone has a fair opportunity to find a great life. It's a quest that will require political will and ingenious policies. President Obama's proposed expansion of the earned-income tax credit goes in this direction, but we need more. Sendhil Mullainathan great political opportunity life Our soft hearts are what tell us that, whatever the circumstances of birth, everyone must be given opportunities to do well. Sendhil Mullainathan everyone whatever birth circumstances
