That gullibility factor

There are some people, often very smart people, who believe anything they're told. The truth seems clear: whatever our backgrounds and however rationally we may tend to act in the normal course of our lives, we do fall for something when we know it's not going to end well.

Knowing all's not fair in fairness cream adverts we try for "flawless fairer skin in seven days", change our toothpaste to have that pearl-white smile with "Use them for 14 days, and get whiter teeth that last" brand and believe with all our might that our dream of a perfect figure will come true with "five days slimming coffee". Mirrors don't lie. Even after applying skin lightening cream, brushing teeth with whitening toothpaste and drinking cups of slimming coffee for 15 years, the mirror delivers a much-needed whack to the ageing narcissist's vanity. Every day we succumb to the power of advertising playing on our aspirations. How gullible are we?

Politicians repeat the same empty promises election after election. We buy smartphones with useless features and expensive but unreliable cars.

Also, there are the "Buy three, get two free" sales. You think five bubble baths might in fact be useful.

Really? In 10 months you'll be happy to use that same vanilla sugar bubble bath that has lost most of its scent and instead smells a bit like Omo detergent powder you've been storing next to it?

It's more likely that you'll go back to the next "buy three, get two free" sale and purchase five more of a different scent. Look at what you bought during Dubai Shopping Festival.

Another common tactic is "Get Dh10 off when you spend Dh100." Translation: Come spend over Dh90.

That's the real problem: A lot of people who want to save money are willing to spend a lot more money thinking they will ‘save' some money.

Sales are wonderful things. People want to save money. But take off those rose-tinted glasses and think.

Then, of course, there is a chance to drive home the latest BMW and Lexus upon spending Dh500. Who won last week? My husband makes sure he splurges to enrol in a draw to win his million-dollar dream! Well, he doesn't know I'm chucking them in the trash with due respect to time, money and mind. I admit, I'm a pessimist. I like it that way.

Learning from mistakes?

Bernard Madoff's Ponzi-style scheme fooled many clever people, including an expert on the science of gullibility, Stephen Greenspan. In his book, the Annals of Gullibility: Why We Get Duped and How to Avoid It, Greenspan looks at history and the various forms of gullibility — religious, political, financial —that have plagued the human race and looks for answers. But in the mother of all ironies, while writing his book, Greenspan found that his retirement savings were "Madoff-ed."

Post-Madoff, tens of thousands of vulnerable people are still being duped into gambling their life savings on risky investments. Whoever said that we learn from our mistakes made a mistake.

Internet dating scams are as old as the internet itself. Most people are familiar with internet scams that start out: "I am a Nigerian prince…" Why then are so many people willing to "fall in love" on the web and fall for the same line of baloney?

A study, by researchers from the University of Tennessee, determined that consumers were more susceptible to fraud if they were older, poor, less educated, and/or living without a spouse.

But, still another study suggested there is no typical fraud victim, which pretty much leaves everyone to fend for themselves.

Which should remind us all of the old adage — if it seems too good to be true, it probably is.