diff --git a/ttyplot.c b/ttyplot.c
index 2214f34..5cadb49 100644
--- a/ttyplot.c
+++ b/ttyplot.c
@@ -499,7 +499,9 @@ int main(int argc, char *argv[]) {
         if (previous_parse_succeeded) {
             timeout.tv_nsec = 0;  // we may have more input pressing, let's not throttle it down
         } else {
-            timeout.tv_nsec = 500 * 1000 * 1000;  // <=500 milliseconds for a healthy clock display
+            // <=500 milliseconds to avoid skips in clock display
+            // <=300 milliseconds to make Ctrl+C feel instant even with high-pressure stdin
+            timeout.tv_nsec = 200 * 1000 * 1000;
         }
         const int select_ret = pselect(select_nfds, &read_fds, NULL, NULL, &timeout, &empty_sigset);