Slow is smooth? - Straightforward Consulting

Have you heard the adage, “Slow is smooth, and smooth is fast!”

I first heard that saying from someone I admire and trust. And because I admire and trust him, I listened to what he had to say. What he was trying to convey was that frequent changes of direction cause problems. And from his perspective, our fast pace amplified those problems.

His reaction to that scenario was to hit the brakes. Mine was to stick a brick on the accelerator. Because slow is…slow. Slow is not smooth. Slow yields a false impression of smooth, but that doesn’t mean that it actually is smooth.

False smooth

Slow gives the appearance of smooth because slow is unaware of changes in elevation. Take a look at the picture below.

Does that road look smooth to you? To someone who moves at a snail’s pace, that road will be smooth. But I’m guessing that as an entrepreneurial leader, you move faster than snails. And if you do, that road is anything but smooth.

True smooth

If you want smooth, go fast. Not because fast is inherently smooth. But because fast is where you find the bumps.

There will always be bumps. The real issue is around how those bumps are dealt with. Will you choose to slow down so that you’re oblivious to the bumps? In other words, will you sacrifice achievement for the sake of comfort? Or will you speed up so that you become aware of the teensiest pebbles? In other words, will you endure some turbulence for the sake of achieving greatness?