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The Age of Speed: Learning to Thrive in a More-Faster-Now World
Is our 24/7, CrackBerry, more-faster-now culture eating us alive or setting us free? For everyone feeling trampled by the speed of life and business, author Vince Poscente reveals why harnessing the power of speed is the ultimate solution for our time-starved era. The Age of Speed shows this and other groundbreaking revelations at work with case studies drawn from renegade companies such as Netflix, Geico, and Nintendo. With smart personal revelations, addictively clever pop science, practical case studies, and a fresh voice, The Age of Speed is a fast, fun read.
231 pages, Hardcover
First published July 16, 2007
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195 people want to read
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 32 reviews
November 2, 2014
Skip it. Reading this in 2014 after it being released in 2008 made it feel dated. There were only three parts of this book I felt were worth remembering: The Eastman Kodak story on page 92, the Google Story on page 112, and the Aikido story on page 196. My advice would be to read those stories, and maybe skim the rest of the book, as your time is probably better spent elsewhere.
April 12, 2020
Though the book has been written 10+years ago, it is still relevant just like any other book that teaches how to build a habit. Though some examples given could be less applicable to an individual (as compare to corporate leaders) , but you will still learn one thing or another through the lens of the author.
“Every time we speed up the time it takes to complete an unimportant task, we create the possibility of more time to spend doing what we feel is significant – whether it’s building a business or watching the sunset.”
-Appreciating speed doesn’t automatically mean multitasking. Multitasking divides your attention, so use it appropriately, in targeted doses.
-Use speed to become agile, and respond quickly to threats and opportunities. Let speed make you aerodynamic and free of “drag.”
-Develop filters to weed out useless information and options.
-Eliminate everything that doesn’t add to speed or quality of life.
-Slow is not always a bad thing.Sometimes waiting builds anticipation and intensifies your pleasure. [such as limited edition item/ticket sales]
You have to be:
1.Agile. Focus on key quality. (eg. P&G in 2000 by sourcing new product idea from the consumer to improve the usefulness of the product)
2.Flexible. Stay committed to your goal but alter method of approach in response to external challenges.
3.Reduce “Drag”. Rework to streamline your life until it is moving through as smoothly as possible. Learn to “Block” your time to focus on the current to do and to prevent distraction.
4. Alignment. Not to derail from your vision. (eg. Nintendo target general audience, as such , it is more interested in providing an entertaining experience for everyone as compare to Microsoft Xbox which focus on state-of -the-art technology and graphics for hardcore gamer)
Company Organizations normally fall into one of four categories:
Zeppelins – These companies see speed as undesirable and threatening. Because they’re fighting the fast-changing world(eg. Kodak stop reinventing and fail to take advantage of its early advantage and brand recolonization results in tens of millions of dollars.)
Balloons – They resist speed, but find ways to succeed especially in “niche markets,”
Bottle Rockets – They embrace speed and race through life, but try to do too much and fail, often hurting themselves and those around them. (eg. Dell computing, focus on speed in terms of efficiency by cutting down the channel of distribution, however, failed to innovate to respons eto market changes results in profit plummet by more than 50% in 2006)
Jets – Speed lover, experience in maneuvering in speed by eliminate "drag" and focus on its core values (eg. Google, when Youtube outpaced its Google video, Google ditch its own and purchase Youtube instead to adapt to market changes.)
“Every time we speed up the time it takes to complete an unimportant task, we create the possibility of more time to spend doing what we feel is significant – whether it’s building a business or watching the sunset.”
-Appreciating speed doesn’t automatically mean multitasking. Multitasking divides your attention, so use it appropriately, in targeted doses.
-Use speed to become agile, and respond quickly to threats and opportunities. Let speed make you aerodynamic and free of “drag.”
-Develop filters to weed out useless information and options.
-Eliminate everything that doesn’t add to speed or quality of life.
-Slow is not always a bad thing.Sometimes waiting builds anticipation and intensifies your pleasure. [such as limited edition item/ticket sales]
You have to be:
1.Agile. Focus on key quality. (eg. P&G in 2000 by sourcing new product idea from the consumer to improve the usefulness of the product)
2.Flexible. Stay committed to your goal but alter method of approach in response to external challenges.
3.Reduce “Drag”. Rework to streamline your life until it is moving through as smoothly as possible. Learn to “Block” your time to focus on the current to do and to prevent distraction.
4. Alignment. Not to derail from your vision. (eg. Nintendo target general audience, as such , it is more interested in providing an entertaining experience for everyone as compare to Microsoft Xbox which focus on state-of -the-art technology and graphics for hardcore gamer)
Company Organizations normally fall into one of four categories:
Zeppelins – These companies see speed as undesirable and threatening. Because they’re fighting the fast-changing world(eg. Kodak stop reinventing and fail to take advantage of its early advantage and brand recolonization results in tens of millions of dollars.)
Balloons – They resist speed, but find ways to succeed especially in “niche markets,”
Bottle Rockets – They embrace speed and race through life, but try to do too much and fail, often hurting themselves and those around them. (eg. Dell computing, focus on speed in terms of efficiency by cutting down the channel of distribution, however, failed to innovate to respons eto market changes results in profit plummet by more than 50% in 2006)
Jets – Speed lover, experience in maneuvering in speed by eliminate "drag" and focus on its core values (eg. Google, when Youtube outpaced its Google video, Google ditch its own and purchase Youtube instead to adapt to market changes.)
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
January 14, 2019
What I found engaging about The Age of Speed was how Vince Poscente was able to illustrate examples of how speed affects us everyday. We all want to go faster in business and daily life without losing track of our goal but how do we accomplish this? I enjoyed each case study and will definitely revisit this book in years to come.
May 3, 2019
Although a bit repetitive, what I found engaging about this book was how Poscente was able to illustrate examples (Eastman Kodak/Google/Aikido) of how speed affects us everyday.
We all want to go faster in business and daily life without losing track of our goal but how do we accomplish this?
Bottomline: just because we can go/do/be faster doesn’t mean it’s the answer
We all want to go faster in business and daily life without losing track of our goal but how do we accomplish this?
Bottomline: just because we can go/do/be faster doesn’t mean it’s the answer
August 24, 2021
Some really good advice. And also - probably by design, considering the title - it's quick to get through. The only problem with books with a unique selling point (in this case speed) is that the good advice that's unrelated to speed (e.g. know your market, automated where possible etc) has 'speed' crowbarred into in, which can be slightly jarring.
Very interesting business case studies too.
Very interesting business case studies too.
March 17, 2025
Was a little dated. Did get a few take aways but nothing life altering.
November 1, 2010
Times are different today vs. the past.
3 TV stations in the 1950s vs. 100s today.
No Internet in the past
Cell Phones didn't really come of age in masses until the 1990s (primarily businesses tile that point).
We consume more information in a day today than most people would consume in years back in previous centuries.
How do we cope with all this technology, with "the world is flat" as Thomas Friedman writes about? That is what Vince is trying to address.
What has changed, how to deal with it and then how to take what is perceived as a problem and turn it into an advantage.
The book is full of TINY 1-3 pages chapters and easy to read. I read it at lunch over a 3 week time span (30 minutes) and would recommend the book to others trying to deal with this issue.
3 TV stations in the 1950s vs. 100s today.
No Internet in the past
Cell Phones didn't really come of age in masses until the 1990s (primarily businesses tile that point).
We consume more information in a day today than most people would consume in years back in previous centuries.
How do we cope with all this technology, with "the world is flat" as Thomas Friedman writes about? That is what Vince is trying to address.
What has changed, how to deal with it and then how to take what is perceived as a problem and turn it into an advantage.
The book is full of TINY 1-3 pages chapters and easy to read. I read it at lunch over a 3 week time span (30 minutes) and would recommend the book to others trying to deal with this issue.
July 29, 2008
Think what you will of these sort of books, this was one I enjoyed. Why? I don’t feel he preached a certain “you must do this to succeed”. I felt more some guidance toward self reflection that meshed well with the measures I was currently taking anyway. Frankly I liked the short chapters and blank spaces on the pages. The doodles made me smile. I enjoyed it because it made me think and even before I was halfway done with it I was recommending it to people “I’m reading this book and it’s making me think”. Just because we can go/do/be faster doesn’t mean it’s the answer. (as posted at my site)
January 19, 2008
A bit trivial. Just a recount of anecdotal companies which have succeeded in the last ten years. It recommends to embrace speed by aligning with your community of interest and its tools and using Occam's razor, eliminate the rest superflous. Right. It mentions specific ways of communicating which might be obsolete in a few years, and yet it doesn't mention social networking, instant messaging or text messaging (SMS).
December 29, 2008
Identifies various approaches to life and work at breakneck speed and provides practical perspective and insight on ways to focus on speeding up dull repetitive tasks so there is more time to slow down and enjoy truly enjoyable ones. I really like that it provides a positive, new approach to dealing with our manic lives, rather than focusing on improving multitasking and time management. If that's all it took, we'd all be masters already!
March 29, 2008
A few interesting thoughts including: asking "How can I make this faster? What would I achieve if I did?" and "To thrive in the Age of Speed, we need to find our focus point at the end of the rope and never lose sight of it."
September 29, 2008
Short, quick, and interesting, this book makes the case for why it's ok to look for as many shortcuts as possible to speed up necessary tasks.
Unfortunately, the book tends to repeat its theory, while only offering a couple of practical tips.
Nevertheless, a pretty interesting read.
Unfortunately, the book tends to repeat its theory, while only offering a couple of practical tips.
Nevertheless, a pretty interesting read.
June 2, 2009
Appropos of the title, this was a fast read. Too fast, I think; I finished feeling that I hadn't really learned much of anything. There were a few anecdotes I enjoyed; I wished for more substance to go with them.
August 9, 2011
This book is sort of an affirmation for me ... but this book is more for those who have not embraced speed. It is a speedy read tho', short chapters, breezy language... All it takes out of you is 2 hours of your time.
October 31, 2011
very easy read. disappointing since its got a business focus. redeeming qualities include the authors insists and diagrams that explain some aspects of speed/time and a hectic lifestyle that go unnoticed by sociologists, not to mention the thought processes we all experience.
March 11, 2012
Ah it was OK. Business is obviously moving faster today but the book really didn't offer much for its readers to use in their lives. Some of the stories were interesting but I didn't get a whole lot out of it.
December 18, 2016
I bought this book at a used book sale for $1 and read through it quickly. We are living in a fast paced world with a ton of information being thrown at us. This book takes the standpoint of chose carefully what information you want to take in.
Want to read
March 13, 2008I'm excited for this one. I had the opportunity to listen to Vince in a live lecture/presentation and he was absolutely amazing.
March 4, 2009
Speed is good and not to be feared. One lesson about tortoise and hare. It's not slow and steady that wins, but a clear focus on the end goal. A really great book with tons on insight and tips.
May 4, 2009
Lightweight, re-packaged, rehash of self-help/improvement books.
September 9, 2010
Really good book to learn to shift gear from slow times to electronic enviornment.
September 25, 2010
Another one of the sociological books and looking and today's fast-paced culture.
Read
August 26, 2011Fun read
February 14, 2013
Outdated
March 29, 2013
A should-read book for knowledge workers and entrepreneurs on concepts and trends regarding psychology.
June 12, 2013
Enough little thought-provoking tidbits to be well worth the short read.
did-not-finish
August 15, 2014Ironically, rather slow-moving and repetitive!
January 17, 2016
The author, a former speed skier, lives a fast life. Multi-tasking divides your brainpower by the number of things you are trying to do simultaneously.
January 22, 2016
Read it a couple of years back and liked it then. I do have a few notes out of the book still and refer it occasionaly. a quick read. worth it.
February 21, 2016
Interesting perspective - caused me to reevaluate some of my internal biases. I'll be thinking about how to apply this effectively.
Displaying 1 - 30 of 32 reviews