The tortoise challenged him to a race; not a sprint, which he knew he could never win, but a marathon.

In his pride, the hare accepted. He disdained the lumbering, plodding tortoise and his laughable, futile claim.

The hare had the speed, it is true, but mixed in with it were his pride, vanity, and arrogance!! In the hare’s mind, the tortoise sought to humiliate him before all of his peers! The hare determined that he would not only prove the tortoise wrong, but he would also multiply the humiliation. He would leave him in his wake from the very start, and then add humiliation upon humiliation by having a nap mid-course, and still beat the tortoise!

We know the story, and we know the outcome. The hare was himself humiliated by the tortoise’s steady, determined pace.

Speed is an asset, but even the best assets, when applied with negative emotions, can become liabilities.

When we make haste (say, because we are only beginning to move after procrastination or poor planning), our speed takes on urgency, desperation, and carelessness.

The opposite of slow is fast, not hasty. The opposite of hasty is considered, measured, and far more likely to lead to success rather than strife or even disaster.

Speed can be a blessing. Haste can be a curse.

See how the Laws of Motion are tied to the Laws of Emotion?

That’s not Rocket Science!