Thin slicing refers to the ability of our unconscious to find patterns in situations and behaviour based on very narrow slices of experience. In this book Gladwell explains that there are two ways to look at something – consciously and below the surface of consciousness. Consciously, we think about what we’ve learnt and eventually come up with an answer. We’re logical, definitive, slow, and need lots of information. When we use the adaptive unconscious our brain reaches conclusions without immediately telling us that it’s reaching conclusions. It’s fast and frugal, you feel something. You don’t know why you know but you know.
Another way to describe this is the science vs. the art of making a decision.
Why does speed dating work – you don’t need a whole evening to decide whether you want to see the other person again – a few seconds is usually enough! Why do car salesmen behave differently to different customers? Why do some doctors get sued and others don’t? Gladwell comes up with some answers to these questions.
REDgum Communications have developed a workshop or conference activity based on thin- slicing. The activity explores the idea that you can create a strong and lasting impression in the first 2½ seconds of an interaction. It’s a great exercise in ‘instant personal brand’, and has been extremely popular in the corporate sector.
Research by Ambady and Rosenthal quoted in Blink shows a strong correlation between the judgements made by students on their first impressions of college teachers and their evaluations of the same teachers at the end of a semester. In the study, the first impressions were non verbal and lasted only 2 seconds. We generously allow participants an extra ½ second to make that impression and also allow them to speak if they wish! A powerful impact can be made in the thinnest of slices. Each participant has 2 ½ seconds on screen to create a positive and lasting first impression.
The compilation of everyone’s work – precisely 2 ½ seconds each – is played at the end of workshop or conference dinner – smartly edited, with titles and music – and it’s a competition to see who stands out and why.
The REDGum ‘Thin-Sliced Personal Brand’ activity takes about 1 hour and can be run for any number of participants (generally between about 24 and 60). Participants are filmed one by one, but there is fun and excitement when the whole group is present, watching and responding to the filming of others. It is perfect as an activity within a longer Personal Brand Workshop or conference, when there is an opportunity to play the (24 to 60) x 2 ½ second compilation film after editing (which takes 4-6 hours).
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Product Description
In his landmark bestseller The Tipping Point, Malcolm Gladwell redefined how we understand the world around us. Now, in Blink, he revolutionizes the way we understand the world within.
Blink is a book about how we think without thinking, about choices that seem to be made in an instant-in the blink of an eye-that actually aren’t as simple as they seem. 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?
In Blink we meet the psychologist who has learned to predict whether a marriage will last, based on a few minutes of observing a couple; the tennis coach who knows when a player will double-fault before the racket even makes contact with the ball; the antiquities experts who recognize a fake at a glance. Here, too, are great failures of “blink”: the election of Warren Harding; “New Coke”; and the shooting of Amadou Diallo by police.
Blink reveals that great decision makers aren’t those who process the most information or spend the most time deliberating, but those who have perfected the art of “thin-slicing”-filtering the very few factors that matter from an overwhelming number of variables.
Product Details
- ISBN13: 9780316010665
- Condition: New
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