Book · 2008 · Business & Economics
Fooled by Randomness
The Hidden Role of Chance in Life and in the Markets
Fooled by Randomness by Nassim Nicholas Taleb has been mentioned in 19 episodes across 10 podcasts (6 episodes recommend it and 13 episodes discuss it), through . Most frequently brought up by Russ Roberts (4 episodes), Tim Ferriss (4 episodes) and Howard Marks (1 episode) on The Tim Ferriss Show (6 episodes), EconTalk (3 episodes) and Lex Fridman Podcast (2 episodes).
#222 of 16,947 books, ranked by how many different people bring it up on podcasts
- episodes
- 19
- podcasts
- 10
- people
- 13
- episodes recommend it
- 6
Well you know the book that has forever changed my life is Nim Nicholas talib's book Fooled by Randomness I read it before I started son Edison a long time ago and it reminds me today that like all the things that people take credit for a lot of it was luck.
Questions about Fooled by Randomness by Nassim Nicholas Taleb
Who recommends Fooled by Randomness by Nassim Nicholas Taleb on podcasts?
Russ Roberts (1 episode), Tim Ferriss (1 episode), Howard Marks (1 episode), Jigar Shah (1 episode) and Matt Mullenweg (1 episode) have recommended Fooled by Randomness by Nassim Nicholas Taleb on podcasts. In all, 13 people brought it up across 10 podcasts (6 people recommended it).
Which podcasts mention Fooled by Randomness the most?
The Tim Ferriss Show (6 episodes), EconTalk (3 episodes), Lex Fridman Podcast (2 episodes), Modern Wisdom (2 episodes) and Acquired (1 episode), among 10 podcasts in all.
Is Fooled by Randomness recommended, or only discussed?
Fooled by Randomness by Nassim Nicholas Taleb was recommended in 6 episodes and discussed without a recommendation in 13 episodes, as of 2026-07-15.
What do people say about Fooled by Randomness?
Jigar Shah on The Ezra Klein Show (2024-12-20): "Well you know the book that has forever changed my life is Nim Nicholas talib's book Fooled by Randomness I read it before I started son Edison a long time ago and it reminds me today that like all the things that people take credit for a lot of it was luck."
When was Fooled by Randomness last mentioned on a podcast?
Fooled by Randomness by Nassim Nicholas Taleb was last recommended on My First Million by Howard Marks on 2026-07-15.
What they say about it
- Reads along with The Black Swan“Fooled by Randomness and Black Swan”2
- Part of the Incerto collection“collection of the following books”2
The best things said about it
The other book would be Fooled by Randomness by Nassim Nicholas Taleb. And it talks about See, I'm a great believer that a lot in life is random.
There was among the hedge fund community there was this book that a lot of hedge fund managers like to talk about, sort of like this secret book that they were passed around that they said was really great. It was called Fooled by Randomness.
I also read full body randomness by tele obviously in 2001 as many people did and i obviously the basic point hitch in ahead like a 2x4 that there's more randomness in the world than you anticipate.
Fooled by randomness which was like by tallah was the the beginning of my obsession with being deceived by numbers and the challenge of thinking about uncertainty.
Where and when it comes up
How it comes up
Most episodes, by podcast
13 people who brought it up
- Russ Roberts4 episodes · recommended in 1
- Tim Ferriss4 episodes · recommended in 1
- Howard Marks1 episode · recommended in 1
- Jigar Shah1 episode · recommended in 1
- Matt Mullenweg1 episode · recommended in 1
- Russ Tedrake1 episode · recommended in 1
- Michael Mauboussin3 episodes
Eric Weinstein1 episode- George Mack1 episode
Les Snead1 episode
Nassim Nicholas Taleb1 episode- Scott Patterson1 episode
Why people recommend it
Fooled by Randomness by Nassim Nicholas Taleb is a popular exploration of the massive role that chance, luck, and probability play in human success, finance, and everyday life. Howard Marks recommended it on My First Million for insights on risk and portfolio construction, while Jigar Shah shared on The Ezra Klein Show that it profoundly changed his life by reminding him how much perceived success is actually luck. On The Tim Ferriss Show, Russ Roberts discussed lessons learned from Taleb's early work, and Tim Ferriss recommended it for understanding unpredictable events. Matt Mullenweg also praised the author's early works on the same podcast. Russ Tedrake mentioned the book on the Lex Fridman Podcast to illustrate how random occurrences can drive historical and evolutionary turning points. Additionally, Eric Weinstein discussed the concept of data clusters and dismissal of luck on Modern Wisdom, and Michael Mauboussin noted on How I Write that the book heavily influenced his thinking on randomness when it was published.
Every mention
Russ Roberts his first book was called fooled by randomness great book 4
“his first book was called fooled by randomness great book”
“fooled by randomness which was like by tallah was the the beginning of my obsession with being deceived by numbers and the challenge of thinking about uncertainty”
“well I think the mistake people make when they make those the kind of statements it's the same mistake they make i to me when they say in a book say talking about Nassim Nicholas Taleb spoke fooled by randomness people say oh I already knew all that”
“uh Fooled by Randomness by Nasim talb”
Tim Ferriss So, so you have but The Black Swan perhaps just as much so Fooled by Randomness by N N Taleb, T A L E B. 4
“i first read actually the the black swan and then went back to fool by randomists also read anti-fragile”
“I haven't read uh the Incerto, or Incherto, I'm not sure how to pronounce that, honestly, but I have read The Black Swan, Fooled by Randomness, and some of his other writing, and I find it tremendously compelling.”
“Aha. So, for clarity, Tim, the Incerto, I'm assuming it's Incerto since he likes Italian, is the collection of the following books: Fooled by Randomness, The Black Swan, Antifragile. Some will include Skin in the Game. Great. Then I'm a fan of the collection.”
“So, so you have but The Black Swan perhaps just as much so Fooled by Randomness by N N Taleb, T A L E B.”
“so Nasim Talib who wrote The Black Swan Fooled by Randomness”
Howard Marks And then the other book would be Fooled by Randomness uh by Nassim Nicholas Taleb. And it talks about See,… 1
“And then the other book would be Fooled by Randomness uh by Nassim Nicholas Taleb. And it talks about See, I'm a great believer that a lot in life is random.”
Jigar Shah well you know the book that has forever changed my life is Nim Nicholas talib's book Fooled by Randomness I… 1
“well you know the book that has forever changed my life is Nim Nicholas talib's book Fooled by Randomness I read it before I started son Edison a long time ago and it reminds me today that like all the things that people take credit for a lot of it was luck”
Matt Mullenweg The second is a much more controversial author, but um I would say ever since I was exposed to one of his e… 1
“The second is a much more controversial author, but um I would say ever since I was exposed to one of his early works, Fooled by Randomness and Black Swan, I will probably always be a fan of Nassim Taleb.”
Russ Tedrake there's a great book by the way um look a series of books by nicholas taleb about fooled by randomness and… 1
“there's a great book by the way um look a series of books by nicholas taleb about fooled by randomness and black swan”
Michael Mauboussin One was Fooled by Randomness, where that came out in 2001. And I read it and I was like, absolutely makes s… 3
“One was Fooled by Randomness, where that came out in 2001. And I read it and I was like, absolutely makes sense.”
“Now, Nasim Talab wrote a book called a fool by randomness in 2001.”
“i also read full body randomness by tele obviously in 2001 as many people did and i obviously the basic point hitch in ahead like a 2x4 that there's more randomness in the world than you anticipate”
Eric Weinstein this is what being Fooled by Randomness is all about 1
“this is what being Fooled by Randomness is all about”
George Mack yeah that's that comes from NASA Nutella NASA and Talib who wrote the Black Swan fooled by randomness and a… 1
“yeah that's that comes from NASA Nutella NASA and Talib who wrote the Black Swan fooled by randomness and a few other interesting concepts”
Les Snead have you read uh fooled by randomness 1
“have you read uh fooled by randomness”
Nassim Nicholas Taleb okay okay I started Black Swan and then I said okay I'm going to talk about Randomness so I got diverted an… 1
“okay okay I started Black Swan and then I said okay I'm going to talk about Randomness so I got diverted and fulfilled by Randomness and then I finished the Black Swan”
Scott Patterson and there was among the hedge fund Community there was this book that a lot of hedge fund managers like to… 1
“and there was among the hedge fund Community there was this book that a lot of hedge fund managers like to talk about sort of like this secret book that they were passed around that they said was really great it was called Fooled by Randomness”
Yeonmi Park so that's the thing uh i was reading this book food by randomness right yeah 1
“so that's the thing uh i was reading this book food by randomness right yeah”
“so that's the thing uh i was reading this book food by randomness right yeah i was like they're up here like oh my god you're so courageous”
Often mentioned with
Other mentions (10: passing, ad reads, own books)
“It's no better than random. Right? And that's actually one of his books, Fooled by Randomness.”
“I wrote about it in in food by Randomness”
“I think fo by Randomness is the one that people like the most the blacks one what they s the most”
“now uh the the the the the this is very similar to food by randomness the problem by randomness”
“okay and and i gave the example and food by randomness by saying if something has a one unit of standard deviation for one unit of returns”
“so so i mean think like that the the the the mechanism is very linked to fooled by randomness”
“the black swan fooled by randomness the better per crusty's skin in the game”
“That's Nassim Taleb the author of Fooled by Randomness and The Black Swan. It's much costlier for us as a race to make the mistake of not seeing a leopard than have the illusion of pattern”
“that's Nassim Taleb the author of Fooled by Randomness and the Black Swan”
“That's what you're in for with Freakonomics Radio, even a little bit of practical philosophy, thanks to our friend Nassim Taleb, author of The Black Swan and Fooled by Randomness.”