Stop Rushing Everything in Business – Part 2: Slowing Down Increases Love
Updated: Dec 27, 2020
Owning an agency can be stressful sometimes because clients bring me “rush” projects that I have to deliver on in a shorter than expected time frame… Or else!
When a project is set to “rush,” everyone’s temper is shorter. The project manager is less patient, the designers are more stressed, and the clients are less forgiving. The entire project experience is under incredible pressure.
I’m the first to say that there is a good type of pressure when a project has a deadline to meet. But that’s different than a project that gets thrown at me last minute because of the effects of a society that is always in a rush.
I’ve lost clients, damaged relationships, and hurt my reputation because of rushing marketing campaigns or one of my services.
When my agency is rushing, there’s no room for love. Instead, all that love and comradery gets set aside, and emotions start running high. The chances for a nuclear explosion in the relationship increase tenfold.
Rush = No Love
We all have situations in our business were being in a rush or hurrying through a process completely shuts off the friendliness and love we have for each other. Instead, we become short with staff, curt in our conversations, and touchy about tasks.
When we’re rushing, we’re mostly doing the opposite of loving. Love requires time, and the rush is the absence of time. Rushing our people, products, or services is the antithesis, the arch-enemy, and the destroyer of loving relationships, lovely projects, and love-filled initiatives.
Rush and love are like oil and water – they can’t co-exist in a healthy relationship in our businesses.
So how do we stop the rush-crazed pace we’re demanded to operate under, especially in environments where it seems everything is a rush job? If we’ve been used to years of hurrying through everything, how can we change to slow down and love more?
And what entrepreneur wants to “slow down?” It’s a time-consuming initiative that flys against reaching our goals as fast as possible. It takes a great deal of time to love well, and there are no shortcuts around it.
The bible says,
“A new command I give you: Love one another. As I have loved you, so you must love one another. By this everyone will know that you are my disciples if you love one another.” (John 13:34-35 NIV)
God put love in the highest place of commandments. Love God and love your neighbors. God didn’t design business to be a rushed and hurried experience. Rush is where the enemy creeps into the entrepreneurial journey to remove love from the equation, therefore removing God even if it’s just temporarily.
No love = Bad for Business
All of your worst moments as an entrepreneur will come because something was rushed. A sale that feels rushed will cause buyers remorse, and they’ll ask for their money back. A service that’s rushed will make clients feel robbed, and they won’t come back. A cooked meal that’s rushed won’t taste as good, and you’ll have to redo the order (the other day the ham in my breakfast sandwich was still cold, and I sent it back).
When you’re behind on appointments, rushing through an endless to-do list, and trying to do too much in a short time, that’s when the love goes out the door and in comes the anger, loss of patience, and tension that sucks up love and replaces it with a half-hearted effort.
Still, need more proof?
Rushing to open a store that still needed some cleaning or fixing may damage the brand’s image in the marketplace. And could you imagine your heart surgeon rushing through your surgery because he has to make it to the 6 pm CrossFit class!?
God First Business = love
We have to make a conscious effort to personally change our mindset in the fast-paced world we live in if we want the culture of our companies to change.
How we relate to people is a test of our character, integrity, and love. Do we love our customers and employees if we’re always in a rush and demanding that they be on our same level or hurry too? Are we going to fall into the enemy’s traps of snapping at someone or completing a project out of anger and frustration?
Love is patient; it’s not rushed. God could have made fruit grow overnight, but instead, it’s a slow process to create the best quality.
We Godpreneurs need to operate our businesses at a new speed – a spiritual speed that lets us be present and aware of our state of emotions. Then, we can be the salt and light God needs us to be in the marketplace. We have to represent God well – and God is love, and love is a different speed than the rate at which the world operates.
We run with the enemy, or we can walk with God. Godpreneurs choose the former.
Today, when the interruption comes (because you will be tested today), instead of feeling rushed and trying to hurry to meet someone’s needs, look for ways to slow the process down and be fully present in love.
Imagine if we all increased our capacity to show love in the marketplace by not being affected by the rush and hurry all around us. How much better would our products and services be?.
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