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Blink: The Power of Thinking Without Thinking | 
 enlarge | Author: Malcolm Gladwell
Publisher: Allen Lane
Category: Book
Buy New: $38.00
New (2) Used (10) Collectible (1) from $6.40
Rating:  992 reviews
Sales Rank: 287715
Media: Hardcover
Pages: 288
Shipping Weight (lbs): 1
Dimensions (in): 8.6 x 5.4 x 1.3
ISBN: 0713997273
Dewey Decimal Number: 150
EAN: 9780713997279
ASIN: 0713997273
Publication Date: January 18, 2005
Availability: Usually ships in 1-2 business days
Shipping: Expedited shipping available
Shipping: International shipping available
Condition: the lightest bit of shelving wear. No marks to the text, Ships within 24 hours.
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Amazon.com Review
Blink is about the first two seconds of looking--the decisive glance that knows in an instant. Gladwell, the best-selling author of The Tipping Point, campaigns for snap judgments and mind reading with a gift for translating research into splendid storytelling. Building his case with scenes from a marriage, heart attack triage, speed dating, choking on the golf course, selling cars, and military maneuvers, he persuades readers to think small and focus on the meaning of "thin slices" of behavior. The key is to rely on our "adaptive unconscious"--a 24/7 mental valet--that provides us with instant and sophisticated information to warn of danger, read a stranger, or react to a new idea. Gladwell includes caveats about leaping to conclusions: marketers can manipulate our first impressions, high arousal moments make us "mind blind," focusing on the wrong cue leaves us vulnerable to "the Warren Harding Effect" (i.e., voting for a handsome but hapless president). In a provocative chapter that exposes the "dark side of blink," he illuminates the failure of rapid cognition in the tragic stakeout and murder of Amadou Diallo in the Bronx. He underlines studies about autism, facial reading and cardio uptick to urge training that enhances high-stakes decision-making. In this brilliant, cage-rattling book, one can only wish for a thicker slice of Gladwell's ideas about what Blink Camp might look like. --Barbara Mackoff
Product Description
Intuition is not some magical and mysterious property that arises unbidden from the depths of our mind. It is a product of long hours and intelligent design, of meaningful work enviroments and particular rules and principles. For too long we have thought of intuition as a kind of black box at the very core of who we are and why we act the way we do. This book shows us how we can hone our instinctive ability to know in an instant, helping us to bring out the best in our thinking and become better decision-makers in our homes, offices and in everyday life. Just as he did with his revolutionary theory of the tipping point, Gladwell reveals how the power of blink' could fundamentally transform our relationships, the way we consume, create and communicate, how we run our businesses and even our societies.You'll never think about thinking in the same way again.
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| Customer Reviews: Read 987 more reviews...
 In a Blink of an Eye January 8, 2009
4 out of 4 found this review helpful
This is an amazing eye opener of a book on human behavior and how our brains function in thought. In a blink of an eye, decisions can be made and appear to be the result of a well thought out and educated process.
The author presents various illustrations of these instantaneous decisions; the antique dealer who recognizes a "fake" antique at a quick glance or the tennis coach who sees an error made even before the player hits the ball. These experts have trained themselves not only through repeated exposure to their craft but also through the use of intuition thoughts. This combination (expertise + intuition) accounts for high percentage of accurate decisions.
In reading the opening title of this book, "The Power of Thinking without Thinking" I was reminded of another book written by Ariel & Shya Kane called "Working on Yourself Doesn't Work: The 3 Simple Ideas That Will Instantaneously Transform Your Life". The Kanes present 3 simple ideas for transforming your life without "working" on any life "problems". The Kanes transformational approach to life has proven successful for thousands of people.
I highly recommend both of these books which are life provoking in positive ways for anyone interested in living an extraordinary life.
 Some good points. January 5, 2009
There are some relevant points in this book. The main point that I gathered from this reading is that our unconscious does some of the thinking for us, and decisions relating to this thinking are some of the best. However, if people were to think why they made these decisions, then they might not understand why they made the decision they made. Some of these decisions are based on intuition and result in good choices.
I believe this book to be the scraps left over from the Tipping Point. This book is written along the same lines, but some of this material seems to have less of a scientific appeal for me. I believe there are many relevant points in this book.
This is an OK read. I liked the Tipping Point and will see how I feel about Outliers.
More relevant than ever with recent election January 4, 2009
0 out of 1 found this review helpful
This book is about impressions, biases, judgments, decision making and nonverbal communication. If you want to understand the Obama phenomenon and where its headed, read the chapter "The Warren Harding Error". Good book.
 Is this a book? January 4, 2009
I am not sure why this is a book. Anecdotes, anecdots, anecdotes.... Is there anything here that is actually researched and studied? A hundred stories does not a coherent theory make. This is typical Gladwell, big statements, good stories, poorly thought through thesis, bold assertions with no proof, keep cheerily going on, one book to the next. Good for killing time on a beach, but why would I pay for this advice?
Thought Provoking with Interesting Stories - bit confused January 1, 2009
Based around the concept of thin-slicing, this book promotes the idea that your initial thoughts / gut feeling are often the right way to proceed (but not always). There are many case studies to hammer in the point and look at it from different perspectives. I feel the concept was a bit oversold, confused, and not pulled together nicely at the end.
In terms of the fundamental concept that we can learn to make better and faster decisions when we filter out excess data, I agree. This particularly holds if you are experienced in the field (i.e. with experience comes intuition).
As for the "Compelling", "Astonishing" and "Brilliant" words being used to describe this book, I think that maybe "Thought Provoking with Interesting Stories" might be a better way to describe it.
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