I hate to burst your balloons.

No, you don't.

Because your balloons are so bright and cheery.

And you're a little thumbtack.

I'm Angela Duckworth.

I'm Stephen Dubner.

And you're listening to no stupid questions.

Today on the show, how much better do you really want to be? The secret to looking successful is to surround yourself with people who are quite dumb.

Also, why do we pad our speech with so many filler words? I don't think I quite had the ballet girl thing.

Gagging with a spoon. So, Angela, there is a question that often gets asked about money, but that I would like to ask you about ability or talent instead.

That probably doesn't make that much sense yet, does it?

Not yet, but why don't you keep going?

Here's what I mean.

This research literature goes back, I believe, to the 1990s, where people are asked,

would you rather earn X amount of dollars, let's say $50,000 while everyone else around you

is earning, let's say, $45,000?

Or would you rather earn, let's say, $55,000 while everyone else around you is earning $60,000. It's relative versus absolute judgments.

Precisely. So that's the money question. And many people, when asked this, at least in an experimental

setting, say they would rather earn less in absolute terms, but more compared to, you know,

the Joneses that they're trying to keep up with or surpassed by a little bit.

So my question for you, Angela, is similarly, would you rather be, let's say, 5% smarter or more talented than everybody around you?

Or would you rather be 10% more talented or smarter while everyone else around you is a little bit better.

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