Making a Killing with Bethany McLean

Allison Schrager: How Do We Master Risk?

Bethany talks with Allison Schrager, author of the new book, An Economist Walks Into A Brothel. She’s a retirement finance economist, and has spent years talking to risk takers in all kinds of businesses. In a Hollywood-worthy twist, she has lately been studying risk in the unlikeliest of places -- talking to sex workers at The Bunny Ranch brothel in Nevada. It turns out, they are experts at pricing and reducing risk. Allison has learned that there is a science to good risk taking. No one reaches the top of their field—be it sex work or running a Fortune 500 company—without mastering risk. They don’t jump in and just go with their gut. They possess a deliberate, thoughtful strategy so they know what risks to take, and reduce the downside if things don’t go their way. So, today we discuss - how do you master risk?  Learn more about your ad-choices at <a href="https://www.iheartpodcastnetwork.com">https://www.iheartpodcastnetwork.com</a>See <a href="https://omnystudio.com/listener">omnystudio.com/listener</a> for privacy information.

Big Business is shaping the world in unprecedented ways. Through a series of conversations with today’s best business writers and thinkers, journalist Bethany McLean (co-author of The Smartest Guys in the Room) cuts through the hype and hand-wringing to reframe the stories you thought you understood and uncover the ones you didn’t know were important.