Be Quick, But Don’t Hurry

“Hurry up!”

“Hurry up and get your shoes on! Hurry up and put on your coat!”

“Hurry up and clean up your toys!”

“Hurry up and go poop!” 😳

This was how I was talking to my twin three year-old boys. My wife had to tell me to stop using that word. “What word? Poop?” I thought, “It could be much worse.” 

“No.” She said, “Stop using hurry. “Tell them to go quickly, but enough with the hurry.”

Have you ever competed in a hurried state? I have, and it led to a scattered mind, poor decision-making, and out of control play. Or, have you ever tried to get anything done in a hurried manner? I have, and it wasn’t my best effort. Have you ever tried to go anywhere at a hurried pace? I have, and I forgot something while hurrying.

We live in a hurried world. There are temptations in every corner of our lives to push the pace. In basketball, there’s an opponent who’s pressuring you. In the corporate world, there’s a race to the top. For kids and families, there’s a different activity every night of the week. For your inboxes, there are hundreds of emails to get through daily. For relationships, there are matters (and distractions) that seem to be more pressing than personal connection.

John Wooden used to tell his players, “Be quick, but don’t hurry.” 

Have a sense of urgency, not recklessness.

Play with pace, not pressured.

Be decisive, not careless.

Go quickly, not rushed.


We must be adamant in resisting the urge to go, go, go. Less can be more. Quality is typically better than quantity. Coach Wooden’s UCLA teams played fast. They pressed fullcourt and pushed the tempo, but he was insistent on not playing rushed. 

Hurry happens when my habits are poor or my perspective is off.

  • Good habits help ensure I’m rested, fueled, focused, decisive, and productive (Bad habits do the opposite).
  • Proper perspective brings gratefulness and directs my focus and energy toward that which matters most (Loss of perspective directs me toward trivial matters).
     

Enough with the hurry. Go quickly, decisively, and purposefully.

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