Wait: The Art and Science of Delay

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Overview

What do these scenarios have in common: a professional tennis player returning a serve, a woman evaluating a first date across the table, a naval officer assessing a threat to his ship, and a comedian about to reveal a punch line?

In this counterintuitive and insightful work, author Frank Partnoy weaves together findings from hundreds of scientific studies and interviews with wide-ranging experts to craft a picture of effective decision-making that runs counter to our brutally ...

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Wait: The Art and Science of Delay

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More About This Book

Overview

What do these scenarios have in common: a professional tennis player returning a serve, a woman evaluating a first date across the table, a naval officer assessing a threat to his ship, and a comedian about to reveal a punch line?

In this counterintuitive and insightful work, author Frank Partnoy weaves together findings from hundreds of scientific studies and interviews with wide-ranging experts to craft a picture of effective decision-making that runs counter to our brutally fast-paced world. Even as technology exerts new pressures to speed up our lives, it turns out that the choices we make––unconsciously and consciously, in time frames varying from milliseconds to years––benefit profoundly from delay. As this winning and provocative book reveals, taking control of time and slowing down our responses yields better results in almost every arena of life … even when time seems to be of the essence.

The procrastinator in all of us will delight in Partnoy’s accounts of celebrity “delay specialists,” from Warren Buffett to Chris Evert to Steve Kroft, underscoring the myriad ways in which delaying our reactions to everyday choices––large and small––can improve the quality of our lives.

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Editorial Reviews

The Washington Post
Frank Partnoy's fascinating, engaging new book…is wide-ranging and expansive, pulling in examples from fields such as journalism, politics and investing, and referring to a wide range of studies and research. He skillfully knits together these findings and anecdotes and shows us the importance of knowing just how long to delay…This isn't a book of platitudes, but one built on one simple imperative. Partnoy just wants us to think before we act or speak. Wait serves as excellent reminder that, when humanly possible, it's best not to hurry.
—Mark Berman
Publishers Weekly
Giving a thumbs-up to procrastination, financial expert Partnoy (Infectious Greed) notes that, while we “are hard wired to react quickly,” everyday experiences can be altered and improved by delaying decisions. He backs this claim with solid research across a variety of fields, from behavioral economics and neuroscience to psychology, animal behavior, finance, and law. Pacing is a key element in everything from race-car driving to comedy: “When a master comedian is on, he or she creates a new and warped world of time. The greatest comedians are masters of delay.” Even such quotidian questions as “When is the ideal moment to apologize?” are ruled by subtleties of time. Athletes know the value of delaying, as do CEOs and military strategists. Irene LaCota, head of the It’s Just Lunch dating network, refuses to include photos in profiles to keep her clients from making snap decisions. To illustrate the “slow hunch,” a full chapter details the two 3M scientists who patiently waited and persisted for 12 years while management decided whether Post-it Notes would be a good product. Entertaining and provocative, Portnoy probes and illuminates the complexities of human decision making with surprising insights and recommendations. Agent: Theresa Park, Park Literary Group. (June)
Kirkus Reviews
A leading expert on financial market regulation studies the virtues of delay and even inaction. In the aftermath of the 2008 economic crisis, Partnoy (Law and Finance/Univ. of San Diego; The Match King: Ivar Kreuger, the Financial Genius Behind a Century of Wall Street Scandals, 2009, etc.) asked "why our leading bankers, regulators and others were so short-sighted and wreaked such havoc on our economy." While there is a high premium today for speed, the author suggests that there are serious downsides to rapid decision-making, unless it is accompanied by long-term strategic thinking and planning. Partnoy's interdisciplinary approach uses elements of behavioral economics, neuroscience and even sports, as he shows how professional tennis and baseball players give themselves the extra milliseconds needed to process the trajectory of a ball before responding. Good judgment depends on allowing enough time for necessary mental processing to occur. The decision may appear to be spontaneous, but prior experience is almost always a factor--whether it occurs preconsciously, in milliseconds, or consciously, in seconds or longer time frames. Partnoy's results are groundbreaking and a potential corrective to modern pressures for rapid response, whether on the playing field, in high-speed computer trading and corporate boardrooms, or on the battlefield. The author argues that although circumstances vary--each having its own requirements--and one size does not fit all, society must foster long-term decision-making in addition to making time for better shorter-term efforts. A fascinating addition to the study of decision-making. File alongside Malcolm Gladwell, Dan Ariely, Jonah Lehrer and other similar writers.
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Product Details

  • ISBN-13: 9781610392471
  • Publisher: PublicAffairs
  • Publication date: 6/4/2013
  • Edition description: First Trade Paper Edition
  • Pages: 304
  • Sales rank: 403,714
  • Product dimensions: 5.50 (w) x 8.10 (h) x 0.90 (d)

Meet the Author

Frank Partnoy is the author of F.I.A.S.C.O., Infectious Greed, and The Match King. Formerly an investment banker at Morgan Stanley and a practicing corporate lawyer, he is one of the world’s leading experts on market regulation and is a frequent commentator for the Financial Times, the New York Times, NPR, and CBS’s 60 Minutes. Partnoy is a graduate of Yale Law School and is the George E. Barrett Professor of Law and Finance and the founding director of the Center for Corporate and Securities Law at the University of San Diego.

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Table of Contents

Introduction ix

1 Hearts and Minds 1

2 Superfast Sports 19

3 High-Frequency Trading, Fast and Slow 33

4 Frontal Nudity in Fight Club 49

5 Bad Call 63

6 A Silce Too Thin 81

7 DON'T PANIC 103

8 First Dates and Fighter Pilots 117

9 When to Eat Crow 131

10 At Last, Procrastination 147

11 Master Class 173

12 Get Off the Clock 197

13 A Lifetime of Innovation 211

14 Go Long 233

Acknowledgments 247

Notes 251

Index 277

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Customer Reviews

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