Messy: The Power of Disorder to Transform Our Lives Description From the award-winning columnist and author of the national bestseller The Undercover Economist comes a provocative big idea book about the genuine benefits of being messy: at home; at work; in the classroom; and beyond. Look out for Tim's next book; Fifty Inventions That Shaped the Modern Economy. Messy: The Power of Disorder to Transform Our Lives celebrates the benefits that messiness has in our lives: why it's important; why we resist it; and why we should embrace it instead. Using research from neuroscience; psychology; social science; as well as captivating examples of real people doing extraordinary things; Tim Harford explains that the human qualities we value - creativity; responsiveness; resilience - are integral to the disorder; confusion; and disarray that produce them. From the music studio of Brian Eno to the Lincoln Memorial with Martin Luther King; Jr.; from the board room to the classroom; messiness lies at the core of how we innovate; how we achieve; how we reach each other - in short; how we succeed. In Messy; you'll learn about the unexpected connections between creativity and mess; understand why unexpected changes of plans; unfamiliar people; and unforeseen events can help generate new ideas and opportunities as they make you anxious and angry; and come to appreciate that the human inclination for tidiness - in our personal and professional lives; online; even in children's play - can mask deep and debilitating fragility that keep us from innovation. Stimulating and readable as it points exciting ways forward; Messy is an insightful exploration of the real advantages of mess in our lives.