Regarding Gladwell, I think he’s a good source of interesting anecdotes, but I’d
be very cautious to take his conclusions too far—he’s much more of a
Oprah-philosopher than a rationalist thinker.
That’s funny, because I actually did improv theatre for a while in high school. Like you might expect, I found it very stressful and difficult. I would get about a month of practice before they picked the competitive team, and I was never good enough to make it. Good experience, though, and I would probably find it much easier now.
I most often hear it referred to as “thinking on your feet,” which is admittedly not noticeably more felicitous than “ability to react.”
If you haven’t read Gladwell’s Blink, you might find it interesting.
You might also find extemporaneous speaking and improv theatre a useful way to improve at this.
Regarding Gladwell, I think he’s a good source of interesting anecdotes, but I’d be very cautious to take his conclusions too far—he’s much more of a Oprah-philosopher than a rationalist thinker.
That’s funny, because I actually did improv theatre for a while in high school. Like you might expect, I found it very stressful and difficult. I would get about a month of practice before they picked the competitive team, and I was never good enough to make it. Good experience, though, and I would probably find it much easier now.