The Tug of Expediency

Every Leader's Tug-of-War

This morning did not start the way I wanted it to. Meeting with a plumber is never how you want your week to start, but it’s especially frustrating after waiting for an hour beyond the scheduled meeting time, only to hear back from the plumbing company that they don’t even have anyone available to send your way and to “just sit tight, we will get to you eventually.”

I had already delayed my morning by over an hour for the meeting, but now I was set back two and a half hours with nothing to show for it. Frustrated and crunched for time, I resumed my normal morning routine of hitting the gym.

Working out for me is much more than a health commitment. It’s my stress release valve. It’s how I clear my head. It’s how I set the tone for the remainder of my day. But here I was on this morning starting two and a half hours behind and having to cut the day short at the other end as well so I could get back to the house for when the plumbers rescheduled (I wonder if they’ll actually show up … It’s a fun game we play).

And then it happened, the subtle tug of expediency. The little voice telling you to make a few short cuts, trim a little here and there, and get things done a little faster. The voice tries to convince you to get things done quickly rather than correctly.

It was tempting for sure, especially as I was trying to figure out how to pack a full day of work into a day cut short at both ends. But I had to remind myself of what was at stake, and it’s far more than just a gym session. It’s my commitment to my health but it is also how I stay sharp and clear-headed for the workday. I had to make a choice: do it right or do it fast. I chose the former.

Many of us are faced with this choice in many different manifestations. We must ignore the voice that preaches expediency over excellence. There certainly is a time to speed up a process for the sake of expediency. But for the things that really matter in life, we must patiently choose to do things right rather than quickly … and leave the latter for the fast food industry.

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