Book Review: The Age of Speed

In keeping with the theme of Vince Poscente’s book, “The Age of Speed,” I downed this book in just over 2 hours.  After chapters 1 and 2, I began reading the first and last line of each paragraph to get on with it.  I guess I learned the lesson well.

So what’s the point?  Well, its actually a powerful one.  Do your stuff faster so you can save time for the important stuff.  The mantra of the 21st Century is to do more quicker so you can do even more quicker.  Poscente offers a new route…maybe not so new.  But, it is not a popular suggestion.  It is good in theory.  But, in practice, it is not widely embraced…through I’m a big proponent.

My favorite tidbits?

• Quit multi-tasking whenever possible and avoid interruptions.  Studies show that it takes up to 30 minutes to refocus when you restart an interrupted task.
• The old parable of the turtle and the hare is problematic because it illustrates a point that slower is better than faster using a faulty assumption.  It is assumed that the hare fails to finish because he’s too fast.  In actuality, the hare fails to finish because he’s lazy and doesn’t follow through while the turtle just wouldn’t quit.  Good point.  I like it.

Is it a book I’d recommend?  Sure.  But, don’t buy it.  Go to Barnes and Noble, buy a Venti Americano with room and polish the book off.  Then, go buy “Getting Things Done” to grab a few practical insights on how to do what Poscente suggests.