Many of my clients over years have been addicted to urgency, thriving on adrenaline. A while back I came across this quiz (can’t remember where it came from, so if you know - let me know) that may help open your eyes to a possible addiction. Why not run through the following assessment to see where you might stand?

For each statement below, your answer choices are “rarely,” “sometimes,” or “almost always.”

1. I seem to do my best work under pressure.

2. I’m frustrated by the slowness of people and things around me.

3. I hate to wait or stand in line.

4. I feel guilty when I take time off from work.

5. I always seem to be rushing between places, projects, and events.

6. I’m at my best when I’m handling a crisis situation.

7. I assume that people will naturally understand if I have to disappoint them or let other things go in order to handle a crisis situation.

8. I eat lunch or other meals while I work.  (Occasionally I skip meals.)

9. When people ask me to handle all the “crisis” situations, it makes me feel like I’m being really productive.

10. I am too busy reacting to the demands of my work to spend time planning my day.

Give yourself one point for every “rarely”
Two points for every “sometimes”
Three points for every “almost always”

Add ‘em up and see if the following rings true:

10 – 17 Points:  You are probably well-organized and easy going. You’re probably not addicted to the urgent.  In fact, it may behoove you to add a little pressure to yourself to get things done.

17 – 23 Points:  Either you could use some help getting organized in your day, or you like a degree of pressure to get things done. You may have an addiction to urgency.  Coaching on planning & organizing your day and your projects will help you be more effective.

24 – 30 Points:  You are either highly in need of organizing skills or it’s highly likely you’re addicted to urgency–or both. As a general rule, most people dislike the constant pressure you apply. As a result, they back off and don’t give their all. In other words, too much urgency actually has the opposite effect of what you want.  It’s probably best to get introspective for a short while with the help of a coach and explore ways to get organized and/or get off the addiction to urgency.

For some, the idea of being addicted to urgency may be a new concept. Hiere’s the real issue: Being addicted to urgency may feel very productive. But a consistent seeking of urgency, like any addiction, it can be destructive.

Can the addiction be broken? Of course. But like with alcoholism, the first step is always admitting the situation exists. If an alcoholic doesn’t want to break his addiction, he won’t. The same goes for those addicted to urgency.

I’ll be posting more on this in the near future. If you tend towards an addiction to urgency and want to address it, stay tuned. If you’d like me to send you some more info on it, just contact me and I’ll get back to you.
 

Share This

Filed in Work, Management, Leadership, Workplace, Coaching