Showing urgency while moving slowly

In case you are wondering, my golf game is showing steady positive progress.  I am pretty consistently in the eighties (my goal for this year).  I played twice last week.  My first game was a scramble with three other golfers (in a scramble, you choose the best ball hit and each of you hits from that place).  I did not add much to the team.  I was mystified… what had happened to my game?  Then on Sunday, I had a wonderful outing at a tough course and scored an 89.  What was the difference? 

Pretty simple… In the scramble, I was focused on the result.  I lost my presence.  On Sunday, I slowed my swing and was in the moment for 75-80 of the 89 strokes I took. 

My point?  It is the same in business, for many of us.  We race to a goal.  Get that RFP in, make sure it is edited well and is our best shot at getting the business.  We race to a meeting having half prepared.  We don’t catch the tone of a supervisor who is coming to us with a problem.  When some minutes, days, or weeks later, we reflect and wonder what happened, it is rare that an executive can pinpoint what went wrong or where. 

So, here is your answer…. Pay attention to each moment.  Don’t rush.  Instead, build in travel time to meetings, be prepared to say to someone who approaches you, I want to really hear what you have to say, can it wait until ____ (a specific time)? 

We can show urgency by living in confusion (what went wrong) or by building in ways to strengthen our performance and increase the likelihood that we will achieve the results we say we want. 

How do you stay present?  What do you do to slow your swing and hit that great shot?