RIVERHEAD When: The Scientific Secrets of Perfect Timing

I've read several of Daniel Pink's books and on the strength of those bought this one. The subject of 'when' is the best time to do certain things (such as analytical and creative thinking, exercising, decision-making and so on) and good timing is a really interesting subject matter and not one I've thought much about before. Daniel's researched this meticulously and presented it really well - making it flow well and a good length.Reading the chapter on morning larks and night owls, which took the concept beyond what you usually hear, made a lot of sense as to the times of day, and how, I work well and less so. In addition to being a fascinating read each chapter contains a section on practical applications. Now I know when I'm best off doing my creative thinking, the benefits of an afternoon nap and a possible reason why my recent visit to the doctor was worse in the afternoon than in the morning.

Daniel H Pink’s latest, fascinating book ‘When: the scientific secrets of perfect timing’ explains that our timing is less about luck and more about science. The book is full of thoroughly researched ways to improve life, such as...- lunch is more important than breakfast 🤯- we should be napping more 😴- and to enjoy united euphoria, join a choir 🎤

In 1792, a prominent French astronomer de Mairan, while gazing at the stars through his window, observed that the leaves of the plant on the window sill, would open at sunrise and closeup at sunset. Strangely, and counter intuitively, the plant would behave the same way, even if it were to be kept in darkness, completely shut out from sunlight. This led to the concept of biological rhythms and a new science of chronobiology.Humans are no exception, and in fact have a daily biorhythm that is slightly over 24 hours. The external world events like the local time, sunrise and the daily schedules readjust our day. Apart from a normal sleep duration of about 7 hours, the rest of the day, for two thirds of us begins with a peak capability in the morning till noon, tapers into a trough till about 4 PM and recovers till about 9 PM broadly speaking. Awareness of this pattern would enable us to plan our day in such a way that we focus on the most important tasks before noon. The book highlights the fact that surgeries performed between 2 and 4 PM are prone to more than four times the error than those performed in the morning. We are at our lowest at 2:55 PM to be precise. An afternoon siesta for about 20 minutes is recommended to improve our day. Vigilance breaks that goes through a check list for example, can reduce mistakes. Restorative breaks like a siesta or a short walk in the park tend to enhance performance.While two thirds (or third birds) follow a normal daily pattern, a fifth of us (owls) are comfortable working late beyond midnight and the rest who prefer to start the day by 4 AM are termed larks. We tend to be larks as infants, owls as teens and third birds in adulthood. Once again, the pattern changes in old age, tending to be larks.Adequate sleep and appropriate breaks are key to high performance. Let us not blindly admire those stalwarts who survive on just four hours of sleep. ‘They are not heroes as we might think…, but are fools who are likely doing subpar work and maybe hurting rest of us because of poor choices’, is a powerful statement in this book.It is also interesting that the book has extended this concept beyond a daily routine. Timing of our graduation is a great example. Those who graduate during a recession end up with lower starting pays, and it takes nearly two decades to catch up with those who graduated in a booming economy. Business school students graduating in a bull market are more likely to end up with a job on wall street, and hence likely to become insanely wealthy, compared to others who might be just extremely rich.Everything that we do seems to follow a pattern in time and timing. Projects start with a bang, slump mid-way and recover towards the deadline. A good project manager should split the project into logical milestones, celebrate each of them and ensure that the team works with the same level of enthusiasm throughout. Midlife crisis is a similar phenomenon that can be appropriately managed.To enhance happiness in all that we do, it is important that we are in sync with a goal or objective, we work in sync with the team and belong to the tribe, and the work that we do is in sync with our heart. The example of the Mumbai Dabbawallas (tiffin carriers) is used as a case to aptly explain this. The dabbawallas, deliver happiness to their customers and not just tiffin.Highly informative and extremely practical, this book is yet another Classic for Daniel Pink.

It’s ok and some good advice. Didn’t keep me as interested as some of Dan’s other books and he is one of my favourites who changed my life with his book ‘A Whole New Mind’. It does have some really practical tips that are easy to start doing but can have a big impact on your life.

Great read- profound insights!