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Eyes Wide Open is a student-led podcast that digs into the hidden side of business and economics. From the unexpected psychology behind everyday choices to the unseen forces shaping global...
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Eyes Wide Open is a student-led podcast that digs into the hidden side of business and economics. From the unexpected psychology behind everyday choices to the unseen forces shaping global markets, each episode unpacks eye-opening facts and stories that often go unnoticed. Each episode blends research, curiosity, and conversation: keeping things insightful, a little surprising, and always wide open.
show less
Episodes & Posts
Episodes
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Transcribed
4 DEC 2025 · Money means something different to every generation, and so does value. In this episode of Eyes Wide Open, we explore how Gen Z, Millennials, and Boomers each define success, spend differently, and reshape entire markets. From Gen Z’s search for autonomy to Millennials’ balancing act to Boomers’ legacy mindset, we break down how economics becomes identity across age groups.
Then we dive into The Business of Nostalgia, where the past becomes one of the most profitable products of the present. From vintage revivals to reboots, retro fashion, vinyl, Barbie, and brand throwbacks, companies tap into memory to sell comfort in uncertain times. For some generations, nostalgia is remembrance; for others, it’s discovery, and for all, it’s irresistible.
Together, these forces show how money and memory shape the modern marketplace: each generation spending for different reasons, yet connected through the emotional pull of the past.
Transcribed
3 DEC 2025 · Holidays and fandom seem like harmless fun, but behind the decorations, merch, and traditions lies a powerful economic engine. In this episode of Eyes Wide Open, we explore how emotion, ritual, and belonging become billion-dollar business models.
We begin with The Business of Holidays, breaking down how events like Valentine’s Day, Halloween, and Black Friday were shaped, and in some cases created, by companies to generate predictable waves of consumption. From manufactured demand to gamified shopping, we show how celebration became strategy.
Then we shift to The Economics of Fandom, where music groups, sports teams, and film universes turn loyalty into a year-round marketplace. Fans don’t just buy products, they co-create value through attention, advocacy, and identity. It’s emotional labor transformed into economic power.
Together, these stories reveal a simple truth: in the modern economy, we don’t just purchase things, we purchase meaning. And meaning, when organized at scale, becomes one of the most profitable industries in the world.
Transcribed
3 DEC 2025 · Why do middle seats still exist? And why do some products become more desirable the harder they are to get? In this episode of Eyes Wide Open, we unpack how businesses use discomfort, scarcity, and strategic inefficiency to maximize profit.
We start with airlines, the champions of price discrimination, and reveal why the dreaded middle seat isn’t a design flaw but a tool for making window and aisle seats feel worth paying for. From anchoring to versioning, we explore how “worse” options help companies sell “better” ones.
Then we shift to the world of waiting lists, where scarcity becomes status. From luxury bags to electric cars, we break down how brands manufacture desire by slowing access, limiting supply, and turning patience into prestige.
Together, these stories show a counterintuitive truth: in modern markets, frustration isn’t accidental, it’s strategic. And the experiences we dislike often exist because they make everything else more valuable.
Transcribed
3 DEC 2025 · Shopping used to be simple, walk in, buy something, leave. Today, it’s a full-scale economic system powered by automation, algorithms, and your personal data. In this episode of Eyes Wide Open, we explore how retail has reinvented itself, from micro-fulfillment centers and same-day delivery to stores that function more like experience hubs than sales points.
We then dive into The Business of Secrets, where the real commodity isn’t the product you purchase but the information you unknowingly give away. Loyalty cards, clickstreams, voice commands, each creates a data trail that companies monetize, model, and compete over. Convenience becomes the reward; privacy becomes the price.
Together, these trends reveal a retail landscape where speed, personalization, and surveillance collide. As consumers juggle efficiency, identity, and trust, the future of shopping won’t be purely digital or physical, but something more human, more emotional, and far more strategic than it appears.
Because in 2025, every purchase is more than a transaction, it’s a data exchange.
Transcribed
3 DEC 2025 · We think games are just for fun, but strategy shapes far more of our daily lives than we realize. In this episode of Eyes Wide Open, we explore how game theory underpins everything from dating apps to traffic lights, showing why our choices depend as much on others’ decisions as our own.
We then shift to the business of board games, a booming $17-billion industry where nostalgia, social interaction, and clever design keep analog play thriving in a digital world. From Monopoly chaos to Catan negotiations, these games reveal real economic lessons about risk, cooperation, and competition.
Together, the two themes highlight one idea: whether in life or on a board, we’re all players responding to incentives, expectations, and each other. Understanding the game doesn’t just make you a better strategist, it makes everyday decisions make a lot more sense.
Transcribed
3 DEC 2025 · We tap our phones to pay, send money across continents in seconds, and watch crypto reinvent itself every few years, yet we still keep cash in our wallets. Why? In this episode of Eyes Wide Open, we explore the digital future of money and the surprising resilience of the oldest payment system we have.
We start with digital wallets and instant pay, breaking down how mobile payments took over economies like China, why real-time transfers are reshaping business behavior, and how “Crypto 2.0” is shifting from hype to real infrastructure. Faster payments mean faster economies, but also faster risks.
Then we ask the stubborn question: Why does cash survive? From transaction costs in rural economies to the privacy that banknotes offer, we explore the emotional, practical, and behavioral reasons people still trust what they can physically hold. Cash isn’t outdated, it’s serving a different kind of need.
Zooming out, we find two economies evolving side by side: one built on speed and traceability, the other on autonomy and trust. And as central banks experiment with digital currencies, the future of money may depend on protecting the very qualities that made cash reliable in the first place.
In a world racing toward cashless convenience, this episode reminds us that money isn’t just technology, it’s psychology, culture, and trust.
Transcribed
3 DEC 2025 · Why do people gamble even when the math says they’ll lose? And why do companies spend millions in auctions they might not even want to win? In this episode of Eyes Wide Open, we explore how both humans and markets make decisions under uncertainty, and why risk is never as random as it looks.
We begin with the Economics of Luck vs. Skill, unpacking why casinos, lotteries, and trading apps thrive on overconfidence and the belief that “this time might be different.” From slot machines to meme stocks, we look at how businesses turn randomness into predictable profit.
Then we move into Auction Theory in Action, where bidding isn’t just about price, it’s about strategy. From Google Ads to billion-dollar spectrum auctions, we break down how information gaps, game theory, and clever bidding rules shape who wins, who loses, and who pays more than they planned.
In the end, both gambling and auctions reveal the same truth: uncertainty isn’t a bug in the system, it is the system. And the real advantage belongs to those who understand how people think under pressure.
Because in a world where risk can be entertainment, opportunity, or manipulation, knowing the rules of uncertainty might be the strongest skill you can have.
Transcribed
3 DEC 2025 · We love anything that feels “free.” But behind every free app, trial, or platform lies an invisible price tag, our data, our attention, our time. And even when something isn’t free, prices like $9.99 or $1.00 are designed to shape how we feel rather than what we pay.
In this episode of Eyes Wide Open, we unpack why “free” is never free, how two-sided markets turn users into products, and why platforms rely on behavioral nudges more than traditional pricing. We also break down the psychology of prices, the left-digit effect, charm pricing, and dynamic algorithms that quietly influence everyday decisions.
At the end of the day, businesses aren’t just selling products; they’re selling perception. And in a world ruled by “free” and $9.99, the real question isn’t what we’re spending, it’s what we’re giving up.
Because if attention is the new currency, understanding the economics behind “free” might be the smartest investment you can make.
Transcribed
22 OCT 2025 · We pay monthly for movies, music, fitness, storage, even sleep apps. Somewhere between “free trial” and “auto-renew,” we built our lives on subscriptions. But as access becomes endless, are we actually getting happier… or just more exhausted by choice?
In this first episode of Eyes Wide Open, we dig into the rise, and growing fatigue, of the subscription economy, where convenience meets cognitive overload. We explore how too many options, as Barry Schwartz’s Paradox of Choice suggests, can turn freedom into frustration, and how companies like Spotify, Netflix, and Adobe are trying to win us back through simplicity disguised as personalization.
From bundling wars to behavioral economics, we unpack how modern business models are learning that the real currency isn’t access, it’s attention. Because in a world where everything’s on demand, the rarest thing we can buy is peace of mind.
Eyes Wide Open is a student-led podcast that digs into the hidden side of business and economics. From the unexpected psychology behind everyday choices to the unseen forces shaping global...
show more
Eyes Wide Open is a student-led podcast that digs into the hidden side of business and economics. From the unexpected psychology behind everyday choices to the unseen forces shaping global markets, each episode unpacks eye-opening facts and stories that often go unnoticed. Each episode blends research, curiosity, and conversation: keeping things insightful, a little surprising, and always wide open.
show less
Information
| Author | Burcu Deren Kıyıcı |
| Organization | Burcu Deren Kıyıcı |
| Categories | Business |
| Website | - |
| bdkiyici@icloud.com |
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