Product Description

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.

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #232412 in Books
• Published on: 2007-09-04
• Original language: English
• Number of items: 1
• Binding: Hardcover
• 224 pages

From Publishers Weekly
Business consultant Poscente employs velocity as a catchall term for explaining how to thrive in our hyperstimulated society. A former Olympic speed skier, he explains how people and organizations can best equip themselves to surf the endless assault of tasks and data familiar to any office worker. To him, speed both causes and solves the ambiguity surrounding high technology and the competing demands of career and personal life. But even if speed is the answer, this book doesn't uncover any insight that hasn't occurred to anyone who's ever stayed late tapping out e-mails. For case studies, the book wheels out long-suffering Eastman Kodak as an example of a Zeppelin that couldn't keep pace with new technology. Google, meanwhile, is a Jet that upped the ante. But readers who want to learn from that savvy company would be better served by other studies than this brief sketch. Poscente dallies on the Aligned Organization and the notion that work is no longer a place—it's a state of mind, but the result is a string of business clichés. With almost every other page left blank, Poscente's kind enough not to demand too much of his readers' time. But the lack of substance ensures that they'll forget it even faster. (Sept.)
Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Review
"God bless Vince Poscente...a good counterpoint to all the handwringing that technology is sapping our very souls." -- Austin American Statesman

"Illustrates why harnessing the power of speed is the ultimate solution for those seeking less stress, less busyness, and more balance." -- Soundview Executive Book Summaries

"The trick isn't trying to slow things down but knowing when and how to speed them up." -- Chicago Tribune

"Thought provoking new book ...advocates coming to terms with --nay, savoring -- the `more-faster-now world'". -- TIME Magazine

"Presented briskly - and at times it's as light as a balloon, with its breezy call to turn speed into an advantage. And he helps us address the world more realistically, providing a glimmer of how to beat the tortoise or soar like a jet." -- Toronto Globe & Mail

From the Publisher
"The Age of Speed is your bible to surf the speed tsunami that's overtaking business and life."

--Scott Cook, Chairman and Co-Founder, INTUIT

"A must-read for anyone caught in the blur between life and work where communication is instant, timelines are tightening, and results are expected immediately."

--Barbara Beck, President, MANPOWER, INC., Europe, Middle East, and Africa

"Seek out speed and celebrate it as your most powerful tool in the global race for better business, a better life, and a better world."

-- Michael Lister, Chairman and CEO, JACKSON HEWITT, INC.

"In a very fun, engaging, and information style, Vince Poscente illuminates how to navigate our new world of more, faster, now. His counterintuitive notion of embracing speed rather than coping with it will change the way people live and work."

--Stephen M.R. Covey, Author, THE SPEED OF TRUST

Customer Reviews

A book that should be read... now.
If you need to read one book to help you take charge of your life, work, and leisure, this is that book. And you should read it NOW. Vince Poscente's "The Age of Speed - Learning to Thrive in a More-Faster-Now World" was written to be read now. Today. Not next month, not next year, because by then, seeing how quickly information tools and technology are evolving and shaping our existence, countless opportunities would've passed.

Poscente lays the foundation of "The Age of Speed" by analyzing man's inherent desire for more from life, the human need to do more with this onrush of technological gizmos, complicated by the fear of stress and busy-ness. He goes on to explain that embracing speed in work and everyday life does not mean sacrificing quality, cost, or peace of mind; and that multi-tasking is actually counterproductive. In a series of real-world examples, he expounds on the four profiles that define how embracing or resisting speed can lead to success or failure. He guides you into determining which profile describes you.

One of the countless crucial points (and "aha!" statements) Poscente delivers in The Age of Speed is a formula for the achievement of one's goals. He stresses that being flexible, sleek, and aligned to an authentic purpose guarantees success. He also likens taking advantage of speed to the philosophy of Aikido. These points are all explained surprisingly clearly in this fast-paced and easy-to-comprehend book.

Most of Poscente's chapters are enhanced by facts, data, and trends surrounding companies and individuals who embraced (or resisted) speed. But the best part of the book is the last two sections: "Applications" and "Tips and Tricks from the Age of Speed." Undoubtedly, this book will challenge your perception of the hectic world we now live in, and inspire you with ways to pursue a more productive and more fulfilling role in it. - Ruby Bayan, [...]

This book stinks
A waste of paper and ink...and my time. I, too, got it at the airport. As I read it, I kept hoping for some "meat", but it was all fluff. Don't waste YOUR time. Don't buy this book. Don't even check it out from the library.
P.S. I think reading it actually caused my IQ to get lower. Save yourself! Step away from this book using all the speed you can muster!

Style, but no substance
About two chapters into this book I realized that the build up that I was hoping for was not going to come. I buckled down and kept an open mind that I might be able to grab some substance in the following chapters. This never quite happened.

The play on scientific studies and company examples barely scratched the surface. I don't recall more than one given example of any single point.