There’s a senior vice president I work with.
He moves at lightning speed.
And, he talks really, really fast.
When I meet with him, I talk fast too.
Not as fast as he does, but faaasssttt.
I used to come with two items for a 30 minute meeting.
I kept walking out with decisions on five items.
Soon, I came with a list of 10 and a guess of how many we’d actually cover.
We always covered more than I expected.
Mostly because he’d stand up, sit down, ask questions, make decisions, connect the dots, risk being ‘wrong’ or ‘partially right’ because momentum mattered more than perfection.
When I think of today’s organization, and the competitive advantage of speed, it’s not a concept any more.
I’ve felt it.
It feels like progress.
It’s exhilarating.
Must be how those dogs feel with their head out the window. They taste speed, and they long for it.
If you want to see what it feels like to move fast, find someone who will let you ride along.
Who’s a person in your life or a leader in your company who will take you for a spin at speed?