Nobel laureate Daniel Kahneman introduced a simple yet revolutionary distinction: the one between our experiencing self and our remembering self.
The experiencing self is the part of us that lives in the moment, second by second. The remembering self is the one that, afterwards, builds the story of what we went through and makes decisions based on those memories.
And it’s the remembering self—not the one that lives, but the one that remembers—that ultimately drives our future choices, judgments, and even our perception of happiness.
Why this matters for brands
Every interaction with a brand has two sides:
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a) the immediate experience, shaped by daily interactions, touchpoints, customer service;
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b) the remembered story, which settles in our memory and becomes the narrative we tell ourselves (and others) about the brand.
Kahneman’s research shows that our memories don’t reflect every single moment. Instead, they are shaped mainly by two factors:
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the emotional peaks (positive or negative) within the experience;
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the ending of the experience.
In other words: what truly matters is not how long or intense an interaction with a brand is, but how it is remembered—through its highlights and its conclusion.
From tourism to branding: a useful parallel
Think about a vacation: it’s not the length that makes it memorable, but the joyful peaks and the feeling you bring home at the end. The same happens with a dinner at a restaurant or the unboxing of a product: you won’t remember every instant, but you’ll recall the surprise, the emotional spark, or the final detail that closed the experience.
Applied to branding, this means that a brand shouldn’t just “fill time” in people’s lives, but rather create emotional peaks and memorable endings.
Implications for strategic communication
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Targeted storytelling: brands should design experiences that don’t just work well in the moment, but deliver standout moments (emotional, aesthetic, relational) and an ending that leaves a positive imprint.
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Customer experience: a customer journey shouldn’t only be mapped in terms of efficiency, but designed around its highlights and closing moments—because that’s where memory is built.
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Enduring reputation: what stays with people is not the full stream of interactions, but the stories they are able to tell afterwards. That’s why brands must nurture positive memory rather than minute-by-minute experience.
Conclusion
The puzzle of experiencing self vs remembering self teaches us that the future of brands isn’t defined only in the present moment, but in the memory that moment leaves behind.
Designing memorable experiences—with strong peaks and carefully crafted endings—means entering people’s narratives and building positive associations that last over time.
About Daniel Kahneman
Daniel Kahneman (1934–2024) was a psychologist and Nobel Prize laureate in Economic Sciences, recognized for his groundbreaking work on behavioral economics and the psychology of decision-making. His research—often carried out with longtime collaborator Amos Tversky—revealed how cognitive biases shape human judgment, influencing everything from public policy to everyday choices. His bestselling book Thinking, Fast and Slow (2011) made these insights accessible to a global audience and continues to inspire leaders, policymakers, and brands worldwide.
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