Recommended reading this week.
Financial Times – Olympic product placement
Psychological insight: Benjamin Braun, Samsung’s European marketing chief, explains why Samsung gave our 17,000 flip phones at the Olympics last year. The brand exposure from athlete’s posting selfies is an example of what he calls ‘mini-max’ (maximum output from minimum effort).
The Guardian – Boredom
Psychological insight: Reflection on a 2014 experiment where people sat alone for 15 minutes, with the option of delivering an electric shock to themselves. Nearly 50% did so! People seem to avoid doing nothing. Scrolling on a phone appears to reflect the same principle, yet people often report feeling more bored afterwards. The lesson? Boredom can be a positive influence – prompting meaningful behaviour!
https://www.theguardian.com/books/2025/jun/15/the-big-idea-should-we-embrace-boredom
Photo by charlesdeluvio on Unsplash
