When was the last time your business day left you feeling "groovy"? And have you ever heard of hurry sickness?

It may seem funny for a professional organizer to champion slowing down in an age where productivity seems defined by speed as much as tangible or financial production, but the key indicators point to speed (thanks to its buddies, sloppiness and lack of caution) making us less productive, less healthy and generally less appealing to be around.

The truth is, we all try to pack too much into one day. Back in October, we talked about the myth of multi-tasking and how trying to beat the clock by doing two or more things at once actually leads to distraction, errors and memory lapses. Well, doing things too quickly yields the same kind of problems.

A recent international "Pace of Life" study in collaboration with the British Council (dedicated to science and social science) conducted some experiments on how speedily we roll along, following the template of a previous investigation.

Earlier studies by California State University from the 1990s determined pedestrian walking speed provided a reliable measure of a city's "pace of life". Those in the fastest cities were found to be less likely to stop to help others and more likely to have higher rates of heart disease.

This newer study found that, in general, the pace of life is 10% faster than it was in the early 1990s when the study was first conducted. To my mind, the surprise isn't that our pace of life has increased that much; it's that it's ONLY 10%. It feels a lot faster, doesn't it?

Certainly the speed of business requires that we do some things faster. If our competitors are replying to emails within the hour, we can't spend weeks crafting a Jeffersonian response with parchment and fountain pen. But we can't fail to recognize that just as we get caught up in busyness (vs. productivity), we get caught up in our need for speed.

When we rush, we focus on doing things fast—eating fast, driving (too) fast, communicating fast (on the phone, via INSTANT messaging, drive-by meetings), interrupting others or finishing their sentences because we feel they're not speaking (or thinking) fast enough!

Do you remember how excited same-day film developing made us feel? Then there was one-hour developing. And now, film is going the way of the dodo in many arenas, not primarily because of quality but because digital is so fast. The image is immediate; we know right away whether the photo is any good, but we've sacrificed that moment where our trip photos come back and we re-live our slow-by-the-sea memories.

We fret about getting there first. Have you ever noticed how as soon as an airplane lands, everyone is rushing to stand up, even the people in the very back of the plane who obviously aren't going to get anywhere quickly? It would stand to reason that in a civilized, or even logical, world, people with connections to make would stand first, while people returning home from a vacation with no particular feeling of urgency would loll in their seats and avoid the hubbub. (Of course, my personal dream is for Fisher-Price style airplanes where the roof lifts off, allowing everyone out easily at the same time, but the engineers haven't yet made that dream come true.)

We certainly have angst about being there on time, even though so few people actually ever are. I've asked new clients to show me their datebooks, and have repeatedly seen schedules with three or four 90 minute or two-hour cross-city appointments back-to-back, with literally no travel time scheduled in between. Aside from the fact that productivity requires some mental downtime, the yen for speed has convinced some people they can violate the laws of physics!

The problem is that very often, doing things quickly means doing them in a shoddy way, failing to research to make adequate decisions, and failing to prepare for all eventualities. We forget one of the basic rules of life and organizing that you probably learned from your parents: if you don't have the time to do it right, how will you have the time to do it over?

Over the next weeks, we'll be looking at many aspects of how our speed is hurting us in terms of lost productivity and otherwise, discussing what we think of attempts to slow the pace of work and life, like the Slow Food Movement and the the World Institute of Slowness, and investigating tips for being more productive by employing a slower pace.

Today, we'll start with something simple. Slow down to make sure you have everything you need. What good does it do to get to the presentation ten minutes early…but without your PowerPoint file? Or to get to the airport the requisite time before boarding, but without your passport?

Successful, unflappable moms know that every evening, the diaper bag must be reloaded with the essentials for the next day. So, too, must successful professionals slow down and check their gear before starting out.

Make a list and share with us--what do YOU need? For example, my checklist ensures that I don't leave for a client session unless I have the following in my briefcase:

1) Client file, including mapped directions and my initial phone consultation notes
2) Labelmaker, spare label tape and six (sigh, yes six) spare AA batteries
3) A fresh legal pad
4) Work gloves in case I encounter grime or ickiness
5) Retractable measuring tape
6) My calendar (so I can be sure to schedule a follow-up appointment)
7) Meds (allergy, migraine, Advil)
8) Granola bar or other non-perishables in case I'm stuck in traffic on the return trip
9) Mad Money (emergency cash, separate from what's in my wallet)
10) A spare tickler file to demonstrate its usefulness

And again, the end of every client session, I slow down…and stop to make sure everything is repacked.

Until it becomes a habit for you to reload your briefcase, your purse, your computer bag, your carry-on at the end of every session, workday or trip, write or program it in your daily task list.

Finally, I urge you to always slow down and make/leave time to:

--Fill the gas tank. You never know when you'll be stuck for two hours behind a massive highway pileup.

--Use the restroom. I doubt anyone has ever been sorry they took an extra moment to do so, but I've heard a lifetime of stories of those who were in too much of a rush. That never ends well.

Please, share your thoughts on the speed of life or what happens when you don't slow down and check that you're prepared.

--
Julie Bestry, Certified Professional Organizer®
Best Results Organizing
"Don't apologize. Organize!"
organize@juliebestry.com
Visit http://www.juliebestry.com to save time and money, reduce stress and increase your productivity

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