I’m excited to announce my first foray into interactive online discussion with readers. On Tuesday August 28 at 6 pm you can join me in a discussion of The (Honest) Truth about Dishonesty, and of course, whatever else comes up. Sign up here.

On Aug 28th at 6 PM EST I will try a new tool for online discussions

So — if you want to chat about dishonesty and have time, join me:

http://www.eventbrite.com/event/3810984758

Excuses. Justifications. Rationalizations. Stories. Stretching the truth… So many ways to whitewash the lies we tell ourselves and others. Here are a few questions that might remind you of your own dalliances with dishonesty.

1. What did you say the last time you were running late?

2. Take a look at your desk at home. How many pens and paperclips and so on did you “borrow” from work?

3. How accurate is your online dating profile? How accurate do you think others are?

4. Which e-mail threads would you delete if you knew someone was going to access your e-mail account?

5. Last time someone called you out for misrepresenting something, how did you explain it?

6. What questionable things have you done because “everybody else is doing it?”

7. Which line items on your resume are a bit of stretch?

8. What did you say the last time someone asked how much you weigh?

9. If you opened your mailbox and found a letter from the IRS informing you of an audit, how concerned would you be?

10. Have you ever told someone you never got their voicemail, text, or email?

11. What did you say the last time someone you don’t particularly like asked if you wanted to go to dinner or an event?

12. Speaking of dinner, have you ever said you enjoyed dinner at someone’s house when you didn’t?

13. What do you say when your dentist asks how often you floss?

14. How many haircuts have you claimed to like in the last year? How many did you actually like?

15. What should you be doing instead of reading this blog and answering these questions?

I’m going to start taking questions from you, dear readers, deeply ponder them, and send you my responses every other week in the Wall Street Journal.

Read this week’s column, A Double Dip for Voting?, right here. On voting, working, and new experiences.

If you have an interesting question for the column, please email me at: AskAriely@wsj.com

Tomorrow, Friday, at 7 PM I will talk about The Honest Truth at the Regulator bookstore in Durham NC.

This is the list of songs that they have created to play in the store for the day.  I am just wondering if these songs will make the people in the store (employees and customers) more dishonest compared to a regular day…..

I am pleased to announce that I will be hosting a live book talk on Shindig (http://www.shindigevents.com/) , a new customized video chat space for live events. We will be connected globally via webcam online, and can interact and participate in a live talk about Honesty and Dishonesty. You can socialize with other participants, or watch and listen. The event will be on Monday July 2nd at 6pm EST.

Here’s how it works. About 15 minutes before it starts, go to this link and log in (http://www.shindig.com/event/dan-ariely). You should test your microphone and camera at this time. Then when the event starts we can get going. We will have an interactive talk about irrationality, honesty and dishonesty, followed by a question and answer session.

The only way to make this interesting and fun is to have people in attendance. So please invite as many of your friends as you like to join us! Spread the word on Facebook and Twitter to as many people as you can.

Honestly* yours

Dan Ariely

Starting next week, the doctor is in! I’m teaming up with The Wall Street Journal to offer answers to readers’ questions sent to IdeasMarket@wsj.com. Whether it’s about family matters, work conundrums, in-law issues, or where to take your next vacation, I’m happy to have the chance to let you sprawl out on my e-couch and provide some (hopefully useful) advice. And it won’t cost you a dime. Or a nickel.

I’m excited to announce two upcoming events in August in sunny Palo Alto. One is called StartupOnomics, which is a summit for people involved in start up companies seeking to make the world better, whether it’s through preserving earth, health, youth, or money (August 24-25). This summit will help you, prospective world-savers, understand how people make decisions so that whatever product or service you’re working on can make an impact.

The summit comprises two days of interactive sessions, work sessions, and lectures with experts in behavioral economics (August 24 and 25).  It will be a veritable smorgasbord of events designed to help people think and plan all aspects of their start up.

The other event is an open mic night with me on the evening of August 23. This is separate and open to anyone who reserves a spot. I’ll make a brief presentation and then open the floor for any questions from the audience.

We’ll need your application by July 15^th, so hurry! And I look forward to meeting all of you who join us. Reserve your spot for the open mic night as soon as possible!

It was gratifying when I recently received some unexpected praise for the new book. If you’re having doubts about whether to read it, maybe this will help you decide…

“I’ve been handing out copies to everyone I know!”

–       Robin Hood

“The world is full of small cheaters, but what separates those amateurs from us pros is dedication and effort. Understanding dishonesty has made us not only more efficient, but it also kept us out of jail.”

–       Everyone responsible for the 2008 financial crisis

“In The Honest Truth About Dishonesty, Ariely shows that our ability to cheat is based on our ability to make ourselves feel good about lying. As a master of this skill, I can personally attest to his insights and findings. I feel great!”

–       Carlo Pietro Giovanni Guglielmo Tebaldo (“Charles”) Ponzi, (1882 –1949), inventor of the Ponzi scheme

“A princely read!”

–       Nicolo Machiavelli

“There’s a sucker born every minute, and Ariely teaches us that we’re likely to be one as well.”

–       Phineas Taylor Barnum (“P.T.”) Barnum, businessman, scam artist and entertainer