3 ms·

My favorite Gladwell book to rip on is Blink. It is 296 pages long and the main point was one only needs a few moments to understand complicated things.

michaelcao 4y ago
I haven't read the Blink yet. I will try to read it in the near future. Thanks for mentioning it.
- swamp40 4y ago
  I suspect he was joking...
- prepend 4y ago
  I think you should try to not read it as it’s bogus. Picking some examples where people made split second decisions that are correct is so silly it’s weird that the book even exists much less is a bestseller. It’s basic premise is that people make split second decisions but never goes into whether these are correct or incorrect. So it boils down to “sometimes people choose right” as it that was somehow novel or useful. He’s a fun storyteller but dangerous when people believe and make decisions based on his writings.
  - ghaff 4y ago
    I remember Tipping Point as being mostly OK. But it really triggered Gladwell's schtick of weaving a well-written entertaining narrative whether or not it's really supported by some cherry-picked anecdotes.
- daveevad 4y ago
  If you finish it, you should probably read it again. ;)
- dexterdog 4y ago
  I think he was making the opposite recommendation.
teachrdan 4y ago
While I'm a huge Gladwell critic, I enjoyed that book quite a bit. But I disagree with your main point. I'd summarize it's conclusions as: 1. People make decisions very quickly -- like often in under a second. 2. These decisions are very powerful. 2a. Powerful in terms of accurately deducing things, and/or 2b. Powerfully emotional in how it sways you (not always in good ways!) 3. You can have some success in retraining your fast decision making. This may seem slight, but I think these three main points are not necessarily obvious and are probably true. I've taken advantage of these by, for example, researching different mobile phones a bunch but consciously not making a decision until I walked into the store and I had a powerful interest in one of them on the shelf. That turned out to be the right answer for me.
- daveevad 4y ago
  I enjoyed The Tipping Point and was excited to read Blink but did not enjoy it nearly from the beginning. It was simply too much cognitive dissonance for me to continue when your point 2a kept being explained. Admittedly I did not finish the book so point 3 does seem valuable to me in a way I probably under-appreciated.
- robswc 4y ago
  I have no opinion on Gladwell, as I haven’t read any of his books, but I swear those 3 things seem to be covered in almost every “self-help” book I’ve read. I don’t want to blame the authors either… but it seems like everyone is getting their water from the same well (thinking fast and slow?). I’m always down to read an authors interpretation or experience with the concepts… but I’d be lying if I said I haven’t found it harder and harder to push through. You’re totally on point though. A lot of things are simple and obvious but only when noticed or in hindsight.

michaelcao 4y ago

I haven't read the Blink yet. I will try to read it in the near future. Thanks for mentioning it.

swamp40 4y ago
I suspect he was joking...
prepend 4y ago
I think you should try to not read it as it’s bogus. Picking some examples where people made split second decisions that are correct is so silly it’s weird that the book even exists much less is a bestseller. It’s basic premise is that people make split second decisions but never goes into whether these are correct or incorrect. So it boils down to “sometimes people choose right” as it that was somehow novel or useful. He’s a fun storyteller but dangerous when people believe and make decisions based on his writings.
- ghaff 4y ago
  I remember Tipping Point as being mostly OK. But it really triggered Gladwell's schtick of weaving a well-written entertaining narrative whether or not it's really supported by some cherry-picked anecdotes.
daveevad 4y ago
If you finish it, you should probably read it again. ;)
dexterdog 4y ago
I think he was making the opposite recommendation.

teachrdan 4y ago

While I'm a huge Gladwell critic, I enjoyed that book quite a bit. But I disagree with your main point. I'd summarize it's conclusions as: 1. People make decisions very quickly -- like often in under a second. 2. These decisions are very powerful. 2a. Powerful in terms of accurately deducing things, and/or 2b. Powerfully emotional in how it sways you (not always in good ways!) 3. You can have some success in retraining your fast decision making. This may seem slight, but I think these three main points are not necessarily obvious and are probably true. I've taken advantage of these by, for example, researching different mobile phones a bunch but consciously not making a decision until I walked into the store and I had a powerful interest in one of them on the shelf. That turned out to be the right answer for me.

daveevad 4y ago
I enjoyed The Tipping Point and was excited to read Blink but did not enjoy it nearly from the beginning. It was simply too much cognitive dissonance for me to continue when your point 2a kept being explained. Admittedly I did not finish the book so point 3 does seem valuable to me in a way I probably under-appreciated.
robswc 4y ago
I have no opinion on Gladwell, as I haven’t read any of his books, but I swear those 3 things seem to be covered in almost every “self-help” book I’ve read. I don’t want to blame the authors either… but it seems like everyone is getting their water from the same well (thinking fast and slow?). I’m always down to read an authors interpretation or experience with the concepts… but I’d be lying if I said I haven’t found it harder and harder to push through. You’re totally on point though. A lot of things are simple and obvious but only when noticed or in hindsight.