Lucky by Design
The Hidden Economics You Need to Get More of What You Want
Contributors
By Judd Kessler
Formats and Prices
- On Sale
- Oct 14, 2025
- Page Count
- 288 pages
- Publisher
- Little Brown Spark
- ISBN-13
- 9780316566827
Price
$30.00Price
$40.00 CADFormat
Format:
- Hardcover $30.00 $40.00 CAD
- ebook $14.99 $19.99 CAD
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What’s the secret to scoring a reservation at a hot new restaurant? When should you enter a lottery to increase your odds of winning? Why did your neighbor’s kid get into a nearby preschool while yours didn’t? Who gets priority for a life-saving organ donation?
These outcomes are not a matter of luck. Instead, they depend on how we navigate hidden markets that arise to decide who gets what when many of us want something and there isn’t enough to go around. Every day we play in these markets, yet few of us fully understand how they work.
In familiar markets, what we get depends on how much we’re willing to pay. Hidden markets do not rely on prices: you can’t buy your way in to a better position. Instead, what you receive hinges on the rules by which the market operates, and the choices you make in them.
Judd Kessler has spent a career studying and designing these very markets. Now, he reveals the secrets of how they work, and how to maneuver in them. Whether you want to snag a coveted ticket, secure a spot in an oversubscribed college course, get better matches in the dating and job markets, do your fair share of the household chores (but no more), or more efficiently allocate your time and attention, this must-read guide will show you how to get Lucky by Design.
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“Judd Kessler expertly explains how to recognize and navigate the many hidden markets that determine what you get and why, delivering actionable advice from the still-emerging field of market design.”Alvin E. Roth, winner of the Nobel Prize in Economics and author of Who Gets What — and Why
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“In a world where so much seems to come down to luck, Judd Kessler reveals that there’s more order — and more opportunity — than we think. With wit, wisdom, and science, Kessler arms you with the tools you need to succeed when resources are scarce and to avoid unnecessary conflict.”Katy Milkman, Professor at the University of Pennsylvania and bestselling author of How to Change.
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“Getting “impossible” to get concert tickets, school admissions, restaurant reservations—these aren't games of chance. They're games of skill. And most people don't even know they're playing. In Lucky by Design, Kessler reveals the hidden rules of the game, and arms you with the strategies you need to win them.”Annie Duke, former professional poker player and bestselling author of Thinking in Bets
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"Who knew cutting-edge economics could be so fun — and so useful? Witty and entertaining, Lucky by Design is essential reading before your next job hunt, school application, or even dinner reservation."Seth Stephens-Davidowitz, economist and New York Times bestselling author of Everybody Lies
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