BLINK

(sigh)

Blink, by Malcolm Gladwell, is an interesting book that I've recently read and one which held my attention throughout. The premise is that our conscious mind isn't equipped to formulate decisions in the "blink" of an eye but our subsconscious mind is. As a result, many of our snap decisions are intuitive yet perhaps tainted by our life experiences -- for example, our subsconscious may yield to racial prejudices "learned" in childhood but stifled in adulthood, and this "tainting" can affect decisions we must make quickly before a protracted thought process can be applied. His examples of first impressions and how they affect our decisions during speed dating, food tasting, military maneuvers, triage during a life-threatening event, etc., are intriguing and provocative. The case studies themselves are interesting from the standpoint of pointing out how marketing genius targets our supposed weaknesses and hones in on them to alter our thinking. The study on selling cars was fascinating.

Gladwell also has another intriguing book from 2002 entitled The Tipping Point which illuminates how a relatively small but focused push for a product or idea can result in a tipping point of acceptance. Both these books are on audiotape and would perhaps make a lengthy automobile trip endurable. They're interesting reading (or listening), and I highly recommend them.

(sigh)