---

 [ SOMETHING YOU SHOULD KNOW - PODCAST ](https://mail.citywatchla.com/index.php?option=com_content&view=category&id=399)

#  The Psychology of Brand Loyalty & The Strange History of Everyday Words

November 21 2025

Written by Michael Carruthers.

<a class="a2a_button_facebook"></a><a class="a2a_button_twitter"></a><a class="a2a_button_email"></a><a class="a2a_button_print"></a>[](https://www.addtoany.com/share)

![](https://mail.citywatchla.com/images/banners/something-you-should-know.jpg)

Ever stepped into an elevator and wondered, what if the cable snapped? It’s a surprisingly common fear — but is it justified? I’ll reveal the truth about elevator safety, how often accidents really happen, and exactly what to do if the unthinkable occurred. [⁠https://www.businessinsider.com/survive-elevator-crash-fall-2015-9⁠](https://www.businessinsider.com/survive-elevator-crash-fall-2015-9)

Why do so many people swear by Apple, Starbucks, or Amazon? What makes certain brands almost irresistible? Behavioral science has the answer. My guest MichaelAaron Flicker — entrepreneur, founder of the Consumer Behavior Lab, and author of [⁠Hacking the Human Mind: The Behavioral Science Secrets Behind 17 of the World’s Best Brands (https://amzn.to/4oepxEB)⁠](https://amzn.to/4oepxEB) and he explains how brilliant companies use psychology and design to tap into your subconscious desires and shape your buying habits.

The English language is full of stories hiding in plain sight. Did you know there are about 20 ways to pronounce the word water? Or that the word silhouette comes from the name of a despised French bureaucrat? Journalist Martha Barnette, co-host of the popular radio show [⁠A Way with Words (https://waywordradio.org/)⁠](https://waywordradio.org/) and author of [⁠Friends with Words: Adventures in Languageland (https://amzn.to/3WBqeM5)⁠](https://amzn.to/3WBqeM5), joins me to uncover the delightful, bizarre, and surprising history behind the words we use every day.

Next time you notice your grocery store has rearranged everything, that’s no accident. Supermarkets often shift products on purpose to keep you wandering longer — and spending more. I’ll explain the subtle psychological tricks retailers use and how you can outsmart them. ⁠<https://www.businessthink.unsw.edu.au/articles/supermarket-tricks-cost-of-living>

 [ ![LA DWP #2 (Pay Your Bill Help)](https://mail.citywatchla.com/images/LADWP/dwp%20level%20pay%205-7-25.jpg) ](https://mail.citywatchla.com/component/banners/click/82 "LA DWP #2 (Pay Your Bill Help)")

 ![](https://mail.citywatchla.com/images/banners/signup-for-cw.png)

## Get The News In Your Email Inbox Mondays &amp; Thursdays

 Name

 [ ![Home - HHR Rent is too High - SB-2](https://mail.citywatchla.com/images/HHR/AHF-rent-too-high.jpg) ](https://mail.citywatchla.com/component/banners/click/104 "Home - HHR Rent is too High - SB-2")

 ---

##  Featured CityWatch Stories

 [ ![](https://mail.citywatchla.com/media/yootheme/cache/a9/070g-a9407aaa.jpg) ](https://mail.citywatchla.com/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=33278:they-said-it-made-no-sense-then-they-voted-yes&catid=327)

### [They Said It Made No Sense. Then They Voted Yes.](https://mail.citywatchla.com/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=33278:they-said-it-made-no-sense-then-they-voted-yes&catid=327)

INVESTIGATIVE ANALYSIS - Sacramento has streamlined housing approvals so aggressively that residents rarely get a heari…

 [ ![](https://mail.citywatchla.com/media/yootheme/cache/20/070h-20f29015.jpg) ](https://mail.citywatchla.com/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=33277:trump-world-from-assassination-abroad-to-chaos-at-home&catid=395)

### [Trump World. From Assassination Abroad to Chaos at Home](https://mail.citywatchla.com/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=33277:trump-world-from-assassination-abroad-to-chaos-at-home&catid=395)

GELFAND’S WORLD - We’re at a moment when all sorts of political questions are coming to a head. And if that old phrase…

 [ ![](https://mail.citywatchla.com/media/yootheme/cache/4b/070i-4ba64015.jpg) ](https://mail.citywatchla.com/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=33283:newsoms-next-immigration-gamble-defy-federal-law-and-dare-washington-to-fight-back&catid=375)

### [Newsom’s Next Immigration Gamble: Defy Federal Law And Dare Washington To Fight Back](https://mail.citywatchla.com/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=33283:newsoms-next-immigration-gamble-defy-federal-law-and-dare-washington-to-fight-back&catid=375)

MY THOUGHTS - Gov. Gavin Newsom is about to decide whether California should take another extraordinary gamble with fed…

 [ ![](https://mail.citywatchla.com/media/yootheme/cache/c7/070k-c75fbf7a.jpg) ](https://mail.citywatchla.com/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=33276:karen-bass-just-sent-l-a-businesses-a-dangerous-message-follow-the-rules-or-dont&catid=312)

### [Karen Bass Just Sent L.A. Businesses a Dangerous Message: Follow the Rules or Don’t](https://mail.citywatchla.com/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=33276:karen-bass-just-sent-l-a-businesses-a-dangerous-message-follow-the-rules-or-dont&catid=312)

THE BOTTOM LINE - Street vendors deserve a realistic path to legalization. But when City Hall weakens enforcement while…

 [ ![](https://mail.citywatchla.com/media/yootheme/cache/7d/070j-7dd1c06c.jpg) ](https://mail.citywatchla.com/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=33280:vote-no-on-the-highly-regressive-10-3-4-sales-tax&catid=12)

### [Vote NO on the Highly Regressive 10¾% Sales Tax](https://mail.citywatchla.com/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=33280:vote-no-on-the-highly-regressive-10-3-4-sales-tax&catid=12)

LA WATCHDOG – Shall an ordinance providing funding for the Los Angeles Fire Department, including for hiring firefighte…

---

##  [ SOMETHING YOU SHOULD KNOW - PODCAST ](https://mail.citywatchla.com/index.php?option=com_content&view=category&id=399)

### [The Extraordinary Benefits of Watching Sports](https://mail.citywatchla.com/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=32974:the-extraordinary-benefits-of-watching-sports&catid=399)

### [Slurping, Beliefs, Happiness, and the Evolution of Language](https://mail.citywatchla.com/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=32973:slurping-beliefs-happiness-and-the-evolution-of-language&catid=399)

### [When Maps Go Wrong &amp; The Science of Everyday Courage](https://mail.citywatchla.com/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=31850:when-maps-go-wrong-the-science-of-everyday-courage&catid=399)

### [Strange Secrets of the Human Body and Why Your Brain Requires Friends](https://mail.citywatchla.com/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=31849:strange-secrets-of-the-human-body-and-why-your-brain-requires-friends&catid=399)

### [The Secret Languages We All Speak &amp; Amazing Changes in Nature You Never Knew](https://mail.citywatchla.com/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=31848:the-secret-languages-we-all-speak-amazing-changes-in-nature-you-never-knew&catid=399)
<div data-id="1" 
	class="eb-inst eb-hide eb-emailform eb-1 eboxContentLocker"
	data-options='{"trigger":"onPageLoad","trigger_selector":"","delay":3000,"early_trigger":true,"scroll_depth":"percentage","scroll_depth_value":80,"firing_frequency":1,"reverse_scroll_close":true,"threshold":0,"close_out_viewport":false,"exit_timer":1000,"idle_time":10000,"close_on_esc":false,"animation_open":"slideInDown","animation_close":"fadeOutDown","animation_duration":400,"disable_page_scroll":true,"test_mode":false,"debug":false,"ga_tracking":true,"ga_tracking_id":"G-P16BQ7X1SW","ga_tracking_event_category":"EngageBox","ga_tracking_event_label":"Box #1 - Global Email Signup Form","auto_focus":false}'
	data-type='popup'
	>

	<button type="button" data-ebox-cmd="close" class="eb-close placement-outside" aria-label="Close">
	<img alt="close popup button" />
	<span aria-hidden="true">&times;</span>
</button>
	<div class="eb-dialog eb-formVer" role="dialog" aria-modal="true" id="dialog1" aria-label="dialog1">
		
		<button type="button" data-ebox-cmd="close" class="eb-close placement-inside" aria-label="Close">
	<img alt="close popup button" />
	<span aria-hidden="true">&times;</span>
</button>	
		<div class="eb-container">
						<div class="eb-content">
				
<form action="https://citywatchla.us2.list-manage.com/subscribe/post?u=34d69f33624fd058ee9b56516&amp;id=4bfa422f51&amp;f_id=00d6c2e1f0" class="eb" method="post" id="mcform-1" name="mcform-1" target="_blank">
			<div class="eb-form-header"><p><img src="/images/2023/06/be-a-city-watcher.png" alt="be a city watcher" width="350" height="97" loading="lazy" data-path="local-images:/2023/06/be-a-city-watcher.png"></p>
<p>Sign up to receive our special e-news blasts on Monday and Thursday evenings!</p></div>
	
					<div class="eb-field-row">

			
			
			
			<input class="eb-input" type="email" name="EMAIL"  placeholder="Email address"  id="EMAIL" value="" required>

			
		</div>
										
	<div class="eb-footer">
    	<button class="eb-btn" type="submit" name="subscribe" style="background-color:rgba(93, 183, 93, 1);color:rgba(255, 255, 255, 1)">
    		Sign up    	</button>
    </div>
</form>			</div>
		</div>
	</div>	
</div>
<div data-id="3" 
	class="eb-inst eb-hide eb-yesno eb-3 "
	data-options='{"trigger":"onScrollDepth","trigger_selector":"","delay":0,"early_trigger":false,"scroll_depth":"percentage","scroll_depth_value":80,"firing_frequency":2,"reverse_scroll_close":false,"threshold":0,"close_out_viewport":false,"exit_timer":1000,"idle_time":1000,"close_on_esc":false,"animation_open":"fadeInUp","animation_close":"fadeOut","animation_duration":300,"disable_page_scroll":false,"test_mode":false,"debug":false,"ga_tracking":true,"ga_tracking_id":"G-P16BQ7X1SW","ga_tracking_event_category":"EngageBox","ga_tracking_event_label":"Box #3 - Yes \/ No Donation Popup Box","auto_focus":false}'
	data-type='popup'
	>

	<button type="button" data-ebox-cmd="close" class="eb-close placement-outside" aria-label="Close">
	<img alt="close popup button" />
	<span aria-hidden="true">&times;</span>
</button>
	<div class="eb-dialog " role="dialog" aria-modal="true" id="dialog3" aria-label="dialog3">
		
		<button type="button" data-ebox-cmd="close" class="eb-close placement-inside" aria-label="Close">
	<img alt="close popup button" />
	<span aria-hidden="true">&times;</span>
</button>	
		<div class="eb-container">
						<div class="eb-content">
				
<div class="ebox-yes-no">
	<div class="ebox-yn-text">
		
		
		<div class="ebox-yn-headline" style="font-size:22px;color:#888888">
			<p>If you only give once a month, would you consider giving to CityWatch?</p>
<p>Your support fuels our mission to promote and facilitate civic engagement and neighborhood empowerment, and to hold area government and its politicians accountable.</p>
<p>Would you like to help? Even if you can only give $5, it will make a difference.</p>		</div>
			</div>
	
	<div class="ebox-ys-buttons" style="font-size: 16px;">
		
<a
					data-ebox-prevent="0"
		data-ebox-cmd="close"
				target="_self"
		href="https://www.citywatchla.com/donate"
		rel="noopener"
	
	
	
	
	class="ebox-ys-btn"
	style="background-color:#2ec664;color:#ffffff;min-width:100px">
	Yes
	</a>
<a
	
	
			data-ebox-cmd="close"
		href="#"
	
	
	class="ebox-ys-btn"
	style="background-color:#ef2345;color:#ffffff;min-width:100px">
	Not Right Now
	</a>	</div>

	</div>			</div>
		</div>
	</div>	
</div>