DIRECTION > SPEED
DIRECTION > SPEED
Mar 21, 2019
So much of life’s focus is geared toward speed. An obsession with the instant. Our culture and rapidly changing environment has put the onus on how quickly things are happening. Built around a combination of 24hr news cycles, social channels, the thirst for fresh content, the ubiquity of novelty; the very internetification of things … we glorify speed and seek out what’s NEW more than ever before.
We experience it ourselves constantly … A 2-day old meme is quickly scrolled past, a groundbreaking news report barely registers a blip on the radar of our attention, because another one is coming in fast with a hot take from a pundit right behind it.
Our dopamine addiction has turned us into little human microwaves – causing us to hunger after what’s instant rather than what’s actually healthy.
When we concentrate on velocity over trajectory, we do it at our peril.
Especially for those of us seen as creatives & culture – makers, we must develop a healthy perspective towards our appetite for speed.
How quickly things develop, reach critical mass, or take that next step, isn’t as important as you may have been led to believe. The truly great movements, companies, and cultures developed at a pace almost irrecognisable to the modern eye.
But this doesn’t always meter with us to the level it should. Our frame of reference means we want more likes than last time, more hits than last week, more friends than that other account, more invitations than our direct competitors, and we want it when we want it. Now.
So often, we get caught up on the speed at which things are growing – rather than the destination they’re growing towards. Being off course even one or two degrees will lead to a massive failure of purpose if left unaddressed.
Our care and attention go so readily to how quickly we’re picking up momentum, how fast new opportunities come our way. But rarely do we stop to think if they’re the right opportunities. Seldom do we stop to prioritise direction over speed.
If we aren’t careful, we can very easily become fixated on our growth, and fail to realise that our direction is more important for a healthy, well-lived life. From our vocational path and relational health, all the way to our emotional wellbeing, these areas of life matter deeply.
All of these areas, and many more are races we will run for the remainder of our lives; and an eye to the quick rather than the correct will have us building an imposing ladder against the wrong wall.
Better to climb the ladder slowly up the wall that you plan to spend 40 years on, than to race to the top of the ladder that leans against short term notoriety and long term obsolescence.
In these last few months, I’ve seen several teams and organisations go gung-ho into. new projects – only to have to pull the reins back and recalibrate some weeks or months later. The speed of your growth – at almost every level – doesn’t matter when compared to the direction you’re growing.
Direction is greater than speed. How fast you’re going doesn’t matter nearly as much as you think. More important than how fast you’re going, is where you’re going.
Though our culture has conditioned us to prioritise speed, you need to see direction as a far bigger influence to your future success.
So today, take a few minutes to examine your trajectory. Spending a few minutes to ensure you’re still one hundred percent on target could be the most powerful part of your week. It will likely involve re – adjusting some of your immediate priorities, including how you spend their time, who you have in your favourites list, and how much you fill your calendar. Slow down and make sure you like where you’re going – it WILL change your life.
Understand this … direction > speed.
Even if you don’t yet realise it.
G
