Observations/Reflections: On the Condition of Peaceful Urgency
Status: Dictated but Not Reviewed
Published: 01/13/2010
Written: 03/22/2010
Dictated By: Flint McGlaughlin

Elsewhere, I have written about the need to infuse an organization with a healthy spirit of urgency. While one must avoid frantic activity, one must also avoid a passive mindset. As I continue to explore the need to infuse urgency throughout my organization, I realize that there is a balanced condition that might be typified with this term: a peaceful urgency.

At first, this might seem like an oxymoron. If not, at least a semantic contradiction. But I think there is a way to sense the need for aggressive, productive activity, while maintaining a spirit of haste. One might rapidly, urgently prepare for a coming hurricane, and still maintain a sense of peace. This peaceful urgency can foster that unique combination of clear thinking and rapid execution.