The Misuse of “Urgency”
The definition of the word “urgency” is “importance requiring swift action.” Teams that operate with this kind of urgency learn what’s most important and then stay focused and disciplined on applying their effort in a timely way.
But what do most of us really mean when we say we want “urgency?” For me and for many of the teams we work with, the implicit definition of urgency seems to be “constantly moving fast.” When we’re in a meeting, we have a knee-jerk reaction to anything that seems off-topic or not on the agenda. We might have a visceral negative reaction to people that talk slow or have a harder time getting to their point. We might jump to fix things that are “off vision” without trying to understand why or how they got that way.
So what’s actually happening here? These leaders have internalized a very different definition of the word urgency - the one I operated with for most of my career. They’ve likely been working in environments where “moving fast” has become an ever-present norm for behavior. And in that environment, it’s hard to see just how counterproductive that kind of “urgency” can be.
Moving fast in our leadership does not have inherent value. Moving slowly is sometimes mission critical. Slowing down is how we learn what’s really happening on our teams, eliminate blind spots, create space for vulnerability and activate lucid thinking. The kind of awareness we achieve when we slow down saves incredible amounts of time down the road. It’s the only way we know what’s TRULY important - so that we can then move with urgency to address it.
I think we all know this intellectually, but notice how you actually react when you label things as moving “slowly” or someone is not sharing something that meets your definition of “on point.” Maybe ask yourself these questions:
When you’re having important conversations with your team about things that could be significant for the organization, do you find yourself getting anxious about the clock or putting timers on?
Do people put an implicit value on answering emails or slacks within minutes if not seconds - even if it’s not objectively urgent?
Do people move to “fix” things immediately, even before they understand a deeper root cause for why it’s happening?
How often are people praised for “urgency” and do people fear being judged for having a lack of urgency?
It might be worth getting more curious about “urgency” and the role it plays for you and your team. Is it truly helping or is it contributing to environments where we end up “fixing” the same issues over and over again? If the result of that is slowing down – even just a little – it might have positive consequences for your results, not to mention your blood pressure.
