Going into this book, I was expecting concrete answers to the questions that this book proposes to the readers: Why are some people brilliant decision makers, while others are consistently inept? Why do some people follow their instincts and win, while others end up stumbling into error? How do our brains really work, in the office, in the classroom, in the kitchen, and in the bedroom? And why are the best decisions often those that are impossible to explain to others?

Unfortunately, it does not answer these questions. The only real conclusion that the book comes to is that split-second decisions are in fact made by people, that these decisions are controlled by our subconscious (which can be highly influenced by external conditions), and that the decisions can have positive or negative results.

The first half of the book touts how powerful "thin-slicing" can be with several examples of various experts in various fields of work that are able to do this. The tone here seems to be to learn to listen to your subconscious.

Near the middle of the book is a few chapters on "mind reading", through facial expressions, which is interesting but again doesn't give you enough information to make any of it useful or practical.

The end of the book seems to say that thin-slicing is a bad thing, which causes us to make snap judgments based on race and gender biases. And that the only way you can tame this flawed decision making process is to become an expert in your field and to always realize that your subconscious is at work in your decision making process. Well, if you are an expert in your field, and you are always dissecting your decisions to look for your subconscious influences, then you are NOT making split-second decisions.

Overall it is a light read (listen) and is informative at a very high, psychology 101, level. It leaves many questions unanswered. Don't expect to take anything too practical or usable away from the material though.

This is a classic bait and switch. It is categorized as science and garnished with a glowing publisher's summary that indicated we would learn the mechanics of brilliant decision making. I did not expect to be lectured to about ethnic predjudice. I must say that the authur has a point but it is not why I bought the book. I did not finish the book. The first hour was interesting but the middle third was suspiciously pointing to a political agenda. I felt duped when the authur brought up Dr. King and I quit the book.

The premise of this audiobook was intriguing; unfortunately, only a small percentage of the text (2% ?) directly speaks to this premise. The remaining 98% consists of painfully long, drawn-out analogies and tenuous examples.

The premise of this book is that people have intuition. Of course everyone has intuition!! So you'd think that this book would discuss how to improve this instinctual ability by offering tips or methods; NOPE. This book is filled with stories of people who had experiences of intuition and nothing else. If you enjoy listening to the intellectual NPR type who love spouting off words and descriptions that make them sound smart but never leads them to a valid point then go ahead and waste your money. Otherwise, this book is utterly worthless and void of any useful information. Anyone in their right mind will be left wanting and begging for this babbling idiot to finally get to a point.

I read the first few reviews on this book and noticed two main camps. There's those people who note that the author doesn't stick to a central message. And then there's the "this book is great" camp. I am definitely a member of the former one.

Malcolm Gladwell may be good at marketing (or his marketing team is) with his catchy title and subtitle but he's not the greatest writer. His writing is all over the place touching on many themes, some seemingly related to the book's main theme and others contradicting it or even not related to it at all.

I am two thirds of the way through the book and I'm trying to decide if it's worth my while to tough it out to the end. Either way, not the worst book in the world but I wouldn't recommend it.

The first review on here is generally accurate in terms of book contents, the book doesn't necessarily have the contradictions it suggests. But it may not offer the solutions that everyone hopes will help them find the mysteries of the universe, either. The problem is that where science is concerned many think that there are always concrete answers, but that is simply the fartheset thing from the truth.

What this book does do is have a lengthy discussion about the things that influence our choices and informs our decisions. There is no firm answer because everyone makes decisions based on a different set of experiences, even if many of them are common.

While perhaps a bit long in a place or two, the author takes a great deal of time to fully present his thoughts which are often complex. I thought while much of the information here is known, it is presented in a way that helps readers understand his concepts.

this was one of the first audible books i listened to. i was addicted. would sit in my car in my driveway waiting for chapters to end. since then i've come to realize this was an exceptional book. had to go back and take time to rate it. well written, well read, unique point of view on things that affect everyone. it is my civic duty to recommend the good ones. (please do the same.)

I tend to listen to fiction but made this purchase when I listened to a free excerpt that ended up on my device. I knew of both this book and "Tipping Point," and knew people who'd raved about the latter but...fiction-oriented as I am, hadn't made the effort in my bit of free reading time to try this author out.

The prologue reads as a mystery, so I was quickly hooked and loved this read! The author reads the book himself and does so beautifully, every chapter left me thinking, had me describing the author's thesis to ...several people -- this is the kind of book that quickly engages, makes you think, and stays with you after completed.

My only beef with the book is that it wraps up too quickly - the beginning and middle of the book are well developed but the ending almost reminds me of a freshman thesis where the author simply runs out of time to complete the work and tidies everything up a bit too summarily.

In this particular book, this remains a minor quibble, I would happily foist this book on everyone I know to read!

I just finished Blink and I am back at Audible to purchase The Tipping Point. Although this book is rather light reading, I am familiar with enough of the science to know it is solid. He makes the work of some brilliant, cutting-edge scientists accessible to a range of readers. I found the book provocative and would recommended it for anyone who is in a position to make important snap decisions (firefighters, police, nurses, paramedics, etc.). Contemplating the situations described in this book has changed my perspective of the world and how I interact with it. For example, as a college professor, I paid special attention to the first few minutes of class while introducing myself to new students, planning how I projected my persona. I created the image I wanted the students to have.
My only criticism is that it seemed rather repetitive after a while and could have been much shorter. Yet, I could understand that he was recapping and clustering points he made in the text. I would imagine that this technique enables those for whom this information is new to fully digest it.

I was first introduced to Malcolm Gladwell a few weeks ago on a podcast for the WNYC program Radiolab. The episode is called "Choice" and if you are new to Gladwell, i would suggest you start there. You'll be hooked.

The negative reviews i've read seem to have felt misled. As if Gladwell were expected to present some unifying theory of intuition. Yet, n a way, he actually does, just not scientifically. What he does present are thought provoking anecdotes about the under appreciated importance of our instinct.. The patches on the quilt missing the thread of your perception. There is lots left to be learned from the experience of others, and luckily there's authors such as Gladwell who will find them.