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Lucky by Design

The Hidden Economics You Need to Get More of What You Want

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Contributors

By Judd Kessler

Formats and Prices

On Sale
Oct 14, 2025
Page Count
288 pages
Publisher
Little Brown Spark
ISBN-13
9780316566827

Price

$30.00

Price

$40.00 CAD

Format

Format:

  1. Hardcover $30.00 $40.00 CAD
  2. ebook $14.99 $19.99 CAD

Buy from Other Retailers:

Wharton economist and market designer Judd Kessler pulls back the curtain on hidden markets that determine who gets what in everyday life—and how to tip the scales in our favor.

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.
 

Genre:

  • “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
  • “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.
  • “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
  • "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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Judd Kessler

About the Author

Judd B. Kessler is the inaugural Howard Marks Endowed Professor of Business Economics and Public Policy at the University of Pennsylvania's Wharton School. In 2021, Kessler was awarded the prestigious Vernon L. Smith Ascending Scholar Prize for his path breaking scholarship. For his work on organ allocation, Kessler was named one of the "30 under 30" in Law and Policy by Forbes. He is an award-winning teacher whose courses are popular among undergraduates, MBAs, PhD students, and executives, as well as a sought-after speaker. His research and writing have been featured in leading media, such as The New York Times, The Wall Street Journal, The Washington Post, Los Angeles Times, Scientific American, Harvard Business Review, Politico, NPR, Hidden Brain, and Freakonomics, among others. He received a bachelor's degree, MA, and PhD from Harvard University and an MPhil from the University of Cambridge. At Harvard, Kessler trained with Nobel laureate Alvin E. Roth, one of the founders of market design, the area in which he has been conducting research for the past fifteen years.

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