Hurry Slowly

The ancient Romans had a saying, festīnā lentē, which means “hurry slowly.” Cal Newport’s book Slow Productivity is a modern exploration of this concept. An online summary of the three principles of slow productivity explains them this way:  

1. Do fewer things.

Limit the number of projects, goals, and tasks you take on. 

2. Work at a natural pace.

Avoid an always-on pace and instead work with more variability in intensity. 

3. Obsess over quality.

Prioritize quality over quantity, even if it means missing out on short-term opportunities. 

This week, I invite you to ask yourself: 

What is something that I could eliminate from my life in order to be more productive in the areas that really matter to me? What would I change about how I work in order for it to be done at a more natural pace? In what area of my life would my becoming obsessed with quality create the biggest impact? What one action will I take in order to implement slow productivity? 

God bless,
Dan