Just more speed alone is not necessarily better

<p>Back in the 1960s, the gifted and poetic singer/songwriter Paul Simon of Simon & Garfunkel released a timeless melody “The 59th Street Bridge Song (Feelin’ Groovy).” For those of us old enough to remember, the opening lyrics “Slow down, you move too fast. You got to make the morning last,” were quickly and forever etched in our hearts, minds and souls. </p><p>I am afraid that Mr. Simon’s special intensity has swiftly moved from relaxed, heartfelt imagery to a classic, distant and, for the moment, forgotten past. Because, my good 21st Century friends, the good old U.S. of A. has become addicted to, and afflicted with, “the need for speed.”</p><p>Our recent economic crash can in great part be attributed to the obsession for fast and faster. Faster money, faster foods, faster cars, faster credit, faster service, faster satisfaction, faster computers, faster Internet speed, faster faster faster. </p><p>And in spite of this high-speed crash, America’s greatest marketers still continue to feed our addiction:</p><p>Comcast’s high-speed Internet with Powerboost television commercial boasts “We never stop making fast faster!” CNBC’s “Fast Money” title promotes making the speedy dollar (yeah right), and Mansueto Ventures’ Fast Company Magazine promotes and highlights the sexiest new-age fastest-growing companies. (Where are they now?) In Wired Magazine’s March issue, Microsoft’s first page of a three-page – yes, three-page – advertisement asks “What do CEOs and CIOs need to endure in this economy?” Flip the page and you get a two-sheeted response highlighting in red capitalized letters, “SPEED OF LIGHT.”</p><p>Phew ... </p><p>Now, I, like many of us, have been afflicted with this addiction/disease.</p><p>Want to know the weather? I push a keyboard button (on my dashboard, of course). So much for the walk out to get the newspaper.</p><p>Want to learn a little history? I will try a Google search. (I wonder what happened to Mom’s old encyclopedias.) </p><p>Want to get the latest and greatest music in your ear real time? I will download a few songs to my iPod.</p><p> I don’t even have to take my key out of my pocket to open my car door and start the engine.</p><p>Well folks, it is not only time for a sprint to economic recovery, it may be time for complete rehabilitation of our thinking and perhaps expectations. </p><p>Now, I am not even beginning to suggest we discard our exponential technology progress of the last 30 years because, frankly, I love the Internet, I love my remote and I certainly adore my keyless automobile. </p><p>But I do think it is time for some pace of commerce introspection because excessive speed got us into this mess – a mess so severe that no one, I mean no one, knows exactly how to clean up after this high-speed chase. And furthermore, it is well documented that accumulating more wealth, or wealth more quickly, has not equated to faster happiness, more happiness or improvement of intrinsic well-being. In fact, if you believe what you read, the opposite has actually transpired.</p><p>So as you race to your next meeting, hurry back to check your e-mail, kill yourself to make an unrealistic or quality-affecting deadline or check your “Crackberry” for the twelfth time this hour, ask yourself some simple questions:</p><p>• If everything is so much faster, than why are so many more people incessantly late?</p><p>• If you do not have time to do it right the first time, do you have time to do it again?</p><p>• Am I delineating between “more efficient” and “faster?”</p><p>• Do I know the difference between “sense of urgency” and “sheer panic?”</p><p>• Is it better to respond intelligently than react emotionally?</p><p>• Is my “time to market” compromising quality and/or values?</p><p>• Am I really enjoying the work and life process or just the result?</p><p>My nearly 25 years of business experience tell me one thing for certain – quality breeds quantity, quantity does not necessarily breed quality. And a little patience can go a long way in ensuring that the pace of commerce positively affects long-term results and business sustainability.</p><p>When I have conducted training courses in the past, I frequently state that those individuals that can help simplify my life (not faster) and get me to slow down – I just want to give them a hug. No cell phone call, no e-mail, not even a handwritten note ... just a hug.</p><p>I guess if Mr. Simon were here today I would give him a hug.</p><p>Since he is not here, I think I will sit back, pop in my iPod earphones, push the Simon & Garfunkel button and search my high-speed Internet ... in the spirit of slowing down</p><p>•••</p><p>Mark Nelson is the former president and chief operating officer of the Nelson Family of Companies, the largest independently owned staffing and human capital service firm in Northern California. Mr. Nelson built and grew businesses for the company for more than 20 years and remains an owner, shareholder and board member. He is currently dedicating himself to helping business leaders “build businesses for a better tomorrow.” Mr. Nelson can be reached at markgnelson@me.com.</p>