Find the Secret Pace
The secret pace* wins the race.
Too fast and you collapse.
Too slow and finishing is irrelevant.
3 Signs You’re Going Too Fast
- Everything feels urgent.
- Good people look tired and hesitant.
- Progress rises but quality falls.
When you outpace capacity, people break.
3 Signs You’re Going Too Slow
- The air feels stale.
- Nothing new shows up.
- People stop stretching.
Under-pace limits growth. People coast.
The sweet spot is Intelligent Restraint.* Push for growth and control pace at the same time.
6 Practices That Set the Secret Pace
- Focus beats vision. Choose two priorities for this week. Say no to the rest.
- Subtract to grow. Stop one activity that drains energy.
- Build routines, not heroics. Create one routine that solves a recurring pain point.
- Rest to rise. Schedule recovery time. Reflect on failures. Ask, “What’s working?”
- Monitor energy. Burnout whispers. Act before it screams. What will you do if you start showing up hating work?
- Momentum builds in inches. Where are you winning? How can you leverage one win into another?
Fast is fragile. Speed without capacity falls apart. No one gives 100% all the time. The secret pace takes teams farther than sprinting all day.
Which practice can you implement today?
On Turtles and Rabbits – Finding Pace
*These terms come from Pacing for Growth by Alison Eyring. This post is inspired by her book.
I felt myself take a deep, and helpful, breath reading today’s post. Thank you for the words of wisdom in a hectic moment.
Thank you for finding the words on this topic for me. The Secret Pace is a perfect way to put it. Combined with the indicators of too fast and too slow, this brings great clarity to what I’m striving for with my team. I appreciate your thoughts, Dan.