Progress: does progress happen in one, aggressive move? Or does it happen through small and consistent efforts?

I shall use two examples where I have seen a comparison of speed and consistency: preparing for examinations, and doing long journeys.

Preparing for exams

I have seen two kinds of people: those who do thorough revision at last minute and those who read everyday of a school term/semester. Those who do last minute revisions are aggressive and may do well in structured questions – questions that require cramming. The knowledge, however, doesn’t stick to the head and it evaporates after exams. They win in the short term.

Doing long journeys

A long journey can be taken in two ways: be as fast as you can, or travel at a comfortable speed. My observation and experience has made me realize that being aggressive on a long journey doesn’t make a big difference on how long it takes to reach a destination – you may arrive earlier but not by a big margin. You’ll have taken riskier manouvres while aggressive. You’ll also have been forced to be more alert, making the journey more stressful. Another thing about aggressive driving is that you can hardly do it for more than an hour at a time without risking an accident.

Which is better: speed, or consistency?

I would go for speed and aggressiveness during a crisis. However, I would not want my every day running to always be fast and aggressive – it’s easy to burn out

All in all, lead your life to reach your goals; live deliberately