In the last part of the book, Gladwell keeps providing us with examples that illustrate the theories about rapid recognition.
Because decisions are mostly based in personal experience, most time that experience interferes with the capability of making (good?) decisions. For instance, in the cases of Kenna’s music or the Aeron chair, in which it seems there was mistrust, rather than dislike, for something new and different. Have you ever felt that you were confused about disliking and at the same time being attracted by something? And if we could be confused by our own feelings, are we better off leaving it to the “experts” to tell us what we should and will like?
According to the author, we all have unconscious reactions that come from a locked room we can’t access. Therefore, can we ever know ourselves wholly and understand the reasons and motivations behind our moves? Have you ever found yourself reacting towards something or somebody in an unexpected way even for your own self?
Regarding Eckman and Friesen’s theories about facial expressions, do you think it does apply to everybody? What about politicians? Have you ever watched someone else speak badly about another individual only to then turn around and greet them with a warm, gushy hello? Is that 'friendly' expression false or an attempt to make amends?
What about “mind-blindness”? Have you ever experienced it? Do you have any trick to control your reactions in extreme stressful moments? And, as the book concludes, are you ready to listening with your eyes?
Finally, our own likeness thermometer: in the blink of an eye, would you say "yes" or "no" for another book of Gladwell?
To reply to your questions, in the 2 seconds recommended by the author, not trying to overanalyze, the book is entertaining, but I don't know what kind of conclusion I can get out of it... that first impressions count? that you need to learn controlling those fast thoughts? don't shoot until you are sure the guy is going to shoot you? (Not defending here the police reaction, just to get an extreme example).
ReplyDeleteI really enjoyed the part where they talked about the micro-facial expressions, I would really like to do the training that they mention, half an hour you start reading people's minds... sounds good!
In my opinion, the book is mainly a compilation of theories and experiments, without any clear conclusion.
ReplyDeleteI came to one conclusion though: decision making is based on time availability. That is, if I don’t have time, I trust my instincts; if I do have time, I tend to take more variables into account, preferably not too many.
A deeper analysis brings me to the question of what is right and what is wrong. Of course, shooting a black kid taking out his wallet is wrong, but dating this guy instead of dating this other one is neither right nor wrong. That is just what life is all about.
The book was entertaining, though I didn’t find the subject so interesting. I can’t say yes or no to Gladwell, I guess reading him again will depend on how appealing I find the subject of the book, whether deciding in the blink of an eye or thinking about it thoroughly.
I think we are in the same line Arantxa, no conclusion... did you take any of the tests proposed?
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ReplyDeleteHi cookies,
ReplyDeleteI was reading the book and then, suddenly, in a blink, it finished... I thought the author was going to add more things, to do a wrap up or to add some conclusions, but not, only some boring notes to finish...
I would like to say that the book is in general interesting, but I prefer to read a novel, I find more interesting to talk about characters, storyline or if the book is a masterpiece or not. This book tells us some things that we didn´t know but many of them I think can be inferred or deduced easily (for example, that trained people do better in thin slicing than untrained people).
In short, I was reading the book with some interest, but I was somehow disappointed when I finished it.
I agree with J. I missed a wrap-up chapter.
ReplyDeleteRocio, I did take two tests. One about old and young people, and surprisingly, I prefer young people. Could that be because I feel more identified with people closer to my age?
The other one was about gay people. It said I was keener on straight people. Maybe it is true. It is a fact that the vast majority of people I deal with everyday are straight and I likely feel more identified with them. It didn't say I don't like homosexuals, it just said I prefer straight. I was like 'really?'
Not sure I took the silliest tests. I got bored with those two... :-)
Though with some delay, I did not want to let pass the opportunity to share my comments on the book and thank the other members for theirs.
ReplyDeleteI have liked the book but, as you might realized by the time it has taken me to finish it, it didn’t hook me.
It is entertaining and I enjoyed reading theories and explanations about everyday things, like heart rate associated with positive stress, or the usual urge to smile when others smile; and about interesting facts such as the story about the orchestra's hiring process (although in that particular case, I thought prejudices more than any other issue were biasing the decisions).
I liked the fact that it made me stop to think about issues in which I feel getting some “training” will in deed help me do better. Also, I gave some thoughts to the experts' issue. Do they really know better? I didn’t reach a final conclusion, though an initial “rebel” reaction made me thought that, of course, not!
Regarding the end, it ended at that point but as well it could have gone for 10, 20 or 30 pages more (or 10, 20, or 30 pages less). Maybe, as some of you mention, a wrap-up chapter could have given it a better sense of end. However, I feel it would have repeated, again, the same examples that are already mentioned many times…
Will I read Gladwell again? Not sure, I think maybe a good summary of his books would be enough for me...