The Tipping Point

If you are interested in a quick, but fascinating read, The Tipping Point, by Malcom Gladwell, is the book for you. The author has a fluid and compelling style of writing that is easy to understand as he presents groundbreaking analysis of scientific research on how trends either spark and spread like wildfire, or fizzle out and die. The book is about how small details, or subtle change can have an enormous impact on making ideas, trends, or even communicable diseases reach their "tipping point".

Ever wonder why some ideas/trends catch on and others do not? What makes ideas "sticky"? What kinds of people are involved in making things "tip"? Gladwell ingeniously illustrates the factors at play in all kinds of epidemics with gripping in-depth research that covers multiple fields of study. Combining an uncanny story telling ability with a talent for using analogies, Gladwell takes findings from a plethora of studies and serves them up in deliciously tantalizing morsels. Read it already. You'll be glad you did.

After reading the Tipping Point, I was so impressed with Gladwell's work, that I decided to read another book of his titled Blink. Blink is a book about rapid cognition, the kind of thinking that happens in the "blink" of an eye.

When are snap judgments good and when are they not? What kinds of things can we do to make our powers of rapid cognition better? Is this a skill that can be honed or mastered? Why are some people brilliant decision makers, while others are incompetent?

Gladwell draws on the most recent research in psychology and neuroscience to make you think about the way you see the world through your own eyes. Again, he masterfully retells compelling stories as he breaks down what happens in the two seconds when we make instant choices, follow our instincts, or make snap judgments. Gladwell also brilliantly describes how our intuition works and the subtleties that influence our decision making process. If you made any snap judgments about this book after having looked at his picture, then you most certainly need to read it! Another brilliant masterpiece!