The World's Best Book Summaries
Is it possible to predict divorce? What are the most telling signs the relationship won’t last? The signs of an impending divorce are often evident from casual interactions of partners, even at the beginning of a relationship. Psychologist John Gottman has identified these signs by conducting observations of interactions of couples, predicting divorce with impressive accuracy. Here’s what he found.
How accurate are snap judgments? What are the dangers inherent in making snap judgments—sizing up a situation based on superficial information, without much conscious deliberation? Snap judgments can go wrong for a few reasons: First, we can be overly superficial when making a judgment. Second, we can fail to recognize when our conscious and unconscious attitudes don’t match, which leads us to make decisions that are inconsistent with our conscious beliefs. And third, we’re far more susceptible to the effects of priming than we think. Learn about the psychology of snap judgments and how they can go wrong.
Are you looking for Blink quotes by Malcolm Gladwell? What are some of the most noteworthy passages worth revisiting? We usually think of snap judgments as lazy, superficial, and probably wrong. But are they really? In Blink, Malcolm Gladwell argues that snap judgments can be just as good as—or even better than—the decisions that we make when we analyze a situation carefully. Below is a selection of quotes from Blink: The Power of Thinking Without Thinking by Malcolm Gladwell.
How do we make snap decisions? In what circumstance is it a good idea to make a snap decision, trusting your gut? Snap decisions are made on the fly—unconsciously, without rational deliberation. But that’s not necessarily a bad thing. According to Malcolm Gladwell, the author of Blink, in some circumstances, it’s better to decide on the fly than to deliberate on how to proceed. Keep reading to learn about the power of snap decision-making, why some snap decisions are better than others, and how to make better snap decisions.
Can you hate your job and still be happy? Why do so many people continue working unfulfilling, soul-sucking jobs, not even trying to escape? Considering you spend a third of your life working, that might be a tall order. Working an unfulfilling job day in and day out is soul-sucking, yet many people won’t even try to escape because they conceive of their work as something they have to endure. Here’s how this line of thinking—that work is something you have to endure—erodes your happiness.
What is a narrative fallacy? Why do we have such a strong urge to rationalize our decisions and behavior through narrative? A narrative fallacy is the tendency to explain random or irrational decisions, events, and behavior with coherent stories. The narrative fallacy is a form of rationalizing: We tend to feel that there’s a rational reason for everything we do. When we don’t know why we’ve made a certain decision, we make up a coherent narrative about how we arrived at it. Learn about the narrative fallacy, why it occurs, and how to counteract it.
Do you feel like you’re always doing something but barely getting anything done? In other words, are you busy but not productive? Many people feel like they are busy all the time but they don’t see the “products of their business.” This is because there is a fine line between being busy and being productive. Being busy but not productive is a sign of either inefficiency or poor time management. Here’s how being busy (but not productive) eats away at your mental energy and what you can do about it.
What are microexpressions? Can facial microexpressions be detected by the naked eye? We can get better at understanding others, and consequently make more accurate judgments about them, by practicing reading people’s microexpressions—facial expressions that last for only a fraction of a second. Microexpressions are almost imperceptible to an untrained, naked eye, but with training, you can become better at detecting them. Let’s take a closer look at how we “thin-slice” people, or make judgments about them by reading (or failing to read) their microexpressions.
Are you looking for The Happiness Equation quotes by Neil Pasricha? What are some of the most noteworthy passages worth revisiting? Happiness has many benefits—it positively impacts your attitude, your chances of success, and the circumstances that play out in your life. Despite knowing this, many people find it difficult to feel consistently happy. In The Happiness Equation, best-selling author Neil Pasricha claims you can overcome this difficulty by training yourself to feel happier. He explores common obstacles to happiness and provides solutions that help boost your enthusiasm for life. Below is a selection of passages with explanations.
What is Malcolm Gladwell’s Blink about? What is the key message to take away from the book? In his book Blink, Gladwell questions the widespread assumption that snap judgments are bad, asking: How do our snap judgments compare to our rational, well-thought-out decisions? He argues that our snap judgments are often just as good as our deliberate decisions. Below is our Blink book review, including background and critical reception.