Life is full of contradictions.
For many things, it’s important to go fast.
But for many other things…it’s important to pace yourself.
Jackie Burke Jr. won the 1956 Masters tournament. He won a number of other golf tournaments and is also one of the most respected golf instructors in the world.
As you might presume, he’s full of wisdom. Wisdom he’s accrued in his 96+ years of life.
A few years back I was deep down the Jackie Burke video rabbit hole. I remember one where he would talk about how he approached the final rounds of tournaments where he was near the lead.
When you’re under pressure, slow things down.
Now, one contradiction in golf is speed. Having a fast swing is good for a lot of things. Those that hit the ball the furthest have a huge advantage. And many would argue that playing fast is also a good thing.
But what Burke was talking about was pressure. And the tendency for nearly everybody when they’re under pressure is to speed up everything. Thought processes speed up. Warmup routines speed up. Everything speeds up without the player even realizing it.
One thought on the topic is that when we are under pressure we’re often in a situation that is new to us. We’re uncomfortable and as a result we try to speed through it as fast as possible to get back to our comfort zone.
So what Burke would do is purposely slow things down. At least in his mind. He would feel that he was moving incredibly slow when in reality he was probably moving at the same pace he had been previously. He felt that by taking this approach that he would continue to perform at a high level. And he often did.
This approach has many parallels in life.
I see it all the time in business. Any time I’m in a new situation and things are uncomfortable, I find myself feeling like things are moving fast. I try to remind myself to slow down. To give myself a chance to catch up to what is going on. To even try to enjoy the moments as they are occurring.
I also think about those that look for fast success in life. In whatever it might be. Business. Jobs. Personal accomplishments and material possessions. In almost all instances where people get themselves in trouble it’s a result of trying to get their too fast.
It’s one of life’s most frustrating contradictions…
Deadlines are good. They help you achieve things. But deadlines can also cause issues. They can lead to the world moving too fast around you and that’s a place where mistakes occur. Often crippling mistakes.
Pace yourself.
If you’re making more mistakes than you want to be making, slow things down.