Barry J. Nailbuff, Avinash Dixit

Game theory. The art of strategic thinking in business and life

Avinash K. Dixit, Barry J. Nalebuff

The Art of Strategy:

A Game Theorist's Guide to Success in Business and Life

Scientific editor Nadezhda Reshetnik

Published with permission from W.W. Norton & Company, Inc. and literary agency Andrew Nurnberg

Legal support for the publishing house is provided by Vegas Lex law firm.

All Rights Reserved. Authorized translation from the English language edition published by John Wiley & Sons Limited. Responsibility for the accuracy of the translation rests solely with MANN. IVANOV AND FERBER and is not the responsibility of John Wiley & Sons Limited. No part of this book may be reproduced in any form without the written permission of the original copyright holder, John Wiley & Sons Limited.

Copyright © 2008 Avinash K. Dixit and Barry J. Nalebuff

© Translation into Russian, edition in Russian, design. LLC "Mann, Ivanov and Ferber", 2015

Foreword by the publication partner

IN BIG BOOKSTORE I always want to buy a lot of books at once, especially those on my favorite topics: management, marketing and education. I would certainly buy this book, because it was recommended to me by the Mann, Ivanov and Ferber publishing house, for which I am very grateful. Now, after reading it, I can say with confidence that I will definitely re-read it again.

Game theory is a branch of mathematics that studies the choice of optimal strategies in conflict situations in which there is a struggle between participants. Each side pursues its own interests and seeks the most profitable solution, possibly to the detriment of rivals. The simplest examples of such games are chess, card games, sports. All of them are conducted according to set rules that cannot be violated. But in real life, rivals can do anything to win: they threaten, manipulate, deceive, for example, the relationship between parents and a naughty child.

At first glance, one can conclude that due to the human factor and simple chance, it is almost impossible to predict the outcome of the conflict. But it's not. Each of our choices is the choice of a dominant strategy (the most profitable given the invariance of the strategies of other players), which makes our behavior predictable in the eyes of those who are fluent in game theory.

For me, getting to know game theory became intuitive. This happened when I started working with large clients: negotiations with them required more thorough preparation. In small and fast transactions, it is important to know the product perfectly and understand the needs of the client. When it comes to large sums, the strategy of the client's behavior, his interests, alternatives and goals are of particular importance. Long negotiations and meetings really resembled a game in which I always aimed for both sides to emerge victorious. The same games also take place between a manager and a subordinate - for example, when it comes to changing wages or setting a difficult task. Therefore, I read this book with excitement, because in it everything that was incomprehensible to me turned out to be a long-thought-out model of behavior.

In my opinion, the special merit of the authors is that in the book they reduced mathematics to a minimum. Avinash Dixit and Barry Nailbuff have put together common and easy-to-understand examples to show how games work in real life. They showed that game theory is interesting. Almost from the first pages, the authors enter into a game with the reader, literally guessing the course of his thoughts, and through dialogue show how you can come to the right decision.

The material in the book is significantly simplified in comparison with the language of mathematics. Despite this, the book cannot be classified as one that can be read in one evening. I think that an interested reader who has taken it in hand will not regret the time spent.

Ivan Samolov, marketing director Samolov Group

To all our students from whom we have learned a lot (especially Seth. – B. N. )

Foreword

WE DID NOT PLAN TO write a new book. We were only going to make the necessary changes and additions to our previous book, Strategic Thinking. But everything turned out differently.

One of the reasons why we decided to revise and correct the previous edition of the book can be explained by the example of Jorge Luis Borges' hero Pierre Menard(1), who decided to rewrite Cervantes' novel Don Quixote. With a lot of effort, Menard created a new version of the novel, word for word repeating the original. However, 300 years have passed since Don Quixote was published. Menard used the same words in his novel, but endowed them with a completely different meaning.

Alas, our original text is not equivalent to Don Quixote, so we still had to change something in the revised and corrected edition. In reality b about Most of the book contains completely new material. New applications, new concepts and new points of view have emerged. Since the publication of the first book, so many new things have appeared that we have seen fit to give this edition a new name. On the other hand, although we use new words, the intent remains the same. We want to change your perception of the world around you and help you think strategically by introducing the concepts and logic of game theory.

Like Pierre Menard, we also have a new point of view on what is happening. When we wrote Strategic Thinking, we were younger; in addition, the idea of ​​self-centered competition dominated in those days. Since then, we have fully understood the importance of cooperation in strategic situations and why a good strategy must necessarily be an acceptable combination of competition and cooperation (one of us wrote a book on this topic: Competitive Cooperation in Business (2)) .

The preface to the first edition of the book began: “Strategic thinking is the ability to outperform your opponent, knowing that your opponent is also trying to outperform you.” Now we add to these words: it is also the ability to find ways for cooperation, even if others are guided only by their own interests, and not by selflessness. This is the ability to convince others (and even yourself) of the need to do what you promise. It is the ability to interpret and disclose information. This is the ability to put yourself in the place of another person in order to predict his actions and influence them.

I would like to think that The Art of Strategy reflects this more mature and wiser point of view. But there is also continuity. While we offer more real-life stories in this new edition, our goal remains the same: to help you develop your way of thinking in the strategic situations you will face. This is not a business travel book offering "seven steps to guaranteed strategic success." The situations you will face will be so varied that you will get better results by knowing some general principles of strategy building and adapting them to the strategy games you play.

Title: Game Theory. The art of strategic thinking in business and life
Writer: Barry J. Nailbuff, Avinash Dixit
Year: 2008
Publisher: Mann, Ivanov and Ferber (MIF)
Genres: Personal growth, Foreign psychology, Foreign educational literature, Popular about business

About the book "Game Theory. The Art of Strategic Thinking in Business and Life Barry J. Nailbuff, Avinash Dixit

Many people know that our life is a game. But are you familiar with the rules of this game, with some tricks that help you win and predict your opponent's moves? Barry J. Nailbuff and Avinash Kalamakar Dixit shared the secrets of successful play activity that can be applied both at work and in everyday life.

The book “Game Theory. The Art of Strategic Thinking” is a real tutorial on survival in a difficult modern life with all sorts of intricacies and tricks. The authors describe the essence of modern society in accessible words - everyone plays in it. And although the games of life are distinguished by a greater branching of moves, their nature is the same as in simple children's amusements. Barry J. Nalebuff and Avinash Kalamakar Dixit give many examples from various areas of life - show business, sports, politics, everyday life, family life, entrepreneurship, etc. - showing the involvement of people in strategic games.

The main idea of ​​the book is that in order to play successfully, you need to think right and plan everything clearly. Without basic knowledge of game theory, this is impossible. You should also remember school knowledge of algebra, learn the laws of logic and some economic fundamentals. In this fundamental work, everything is analyzed very carefully, so it will not be possible to “swallow” the book superficially - each chapter needs to be considered and systematized. However, despite the academic nature of the work, Barry J. Neilbuff and Avinash Kalamakar Dixit wrote it in an accessible language with a clear logic of presentation of theoretical aspects and examples for them, so the material will be understandable even to people who are far from mathematical calculations. Reading this work, first of all, should be for those whose work is related to communication: negotiating, large sales, consulting on various kinds of services, etc.

The value of this tutorial is the presence of a small workshop on the last pages - here are placed several tasks aimed at training thinking. The publication concludes with an impressive list of references that will be useful for anyone wishing to continue their study of game theory.

Read the work “Game Theory. The Art of Strategic Thinking” is pleasant not only from the point of view of educational material, but also for the purpose of entertainment - the game has even penetrated into the style of writing. The authors encourage the reader to think and search for the right options among all possible, and this is a necessary condition for a successful player.

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