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Concentration Aids Speed and Accuracy in Action · Sri Aurobindo Studies

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  The human propensity to set up either or scenarios leads us to
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  believe that we either have to focus on perfection or speed in
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  the things we do. This is actually a false choice
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  because it leaves out the factor of concentration, which can
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  accomplish actions with speed while not sacrificing accuracy.
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  If we review carefully our normal action, we find that even
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  when we are generally focused on something, we have distractions,
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  stray thoughts, etcetera. We may experience some physical
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  sensations such as hunger. We may be thinking about what we
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  are going to do after we finish the project.
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  We may be speculating on career, personal relationships,
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  etcetera. Many people carry their personal
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  concerns with them into whatever they are doing, and this tends
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  to create both distraction and a certain amount of friction,
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  which leads to either errors or delays, Or we act under time
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  pressure and push things along without concern about possible
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  errors or missteps. When we focus instead on
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  perfection in the action, we tend to slow down and move to a
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  laborious review process. This method is actually
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  recommended in certain spiritual paths to train the individual in
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  the ability to observe his own inner process and exercise due
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  care in all he does. As a training exercise, it can
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  be very valuable, but in the world of action, it too has its
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  drawbacks. If it causes substantial delays,
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  the power of concentration, to the extent we can harness it,
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  allows us to block out these distracting thoughts, feelings,
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  emotions, and speculations, and thus reduces the friction speeds
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  the result without sacrificing the quality of the work.
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  This can help us achieve a balance between speed and
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  accuracy. A disciple asks when one works
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  and wants to do 1's best. One needs much time, but
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  generally we don't have much time, we are in a hurry.
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  How to do 1's best when 1 is in a hurry, The mother writes
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  quote. It is a very interesting subject
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  and I wanted to speak to you about it in detail one day.
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  Generally, when men are in a hurry, they do not do completely
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  what they have to do, or they do it badly what they do well.
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  There is a third way. It is to intensify 1's
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  concentration. If you do that, you can gain
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  half the time even from a very short time.
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  Take a very ordinary example, to have your bath and to dress.
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  The time needed varies with people, doesn't it?
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  But let us say half an hour is required for doing everything
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  without losing time and without hurrying.
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  Then if you are in a hurry, one of two things happens.
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  You don't wash so well or you dress badly.
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  But there's another way to concentrate 1's attention and
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  one's energy. Think only of what one is doing
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  and not of anything else, not to make a movement too much, to
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  make the exact movement in the most exact way.
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  And it is an experience lived. I can speak of it with
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  certitude. You can do in 15 minutes what
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  you were formerly doing in half an hour and do it as well, at
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  times even better, without forgetting anything, with the,
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  without leaving out anything, simply by the intensity of the
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  concentration. And this is the best answer to
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  all those who say, oh, if one wants to do things well, one
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  must have time. This is not true for all that
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  you do, study, play, work. There is only one solution to
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  increase one's power of concentration.
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  And when you acquire this concentration, it is no longer
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  tiring. Naturally, in the beginning it
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  creates a tension, but when you have grown used to it, the
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  tension diminishes and a moment comes when what fatigues you is
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  to be not those concentrated, to disperse yourself.
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  Allow yourself to be swallowed by all kinds of things and not
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  to concentrate on what you do. 1 can succeed in doing things even
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  better and more quickly by the power of concentration, and in
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  this way you can make use of work as a means of growth.
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  End Quote Reference Sri Aurobindo and the Mother Powers
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  within, Chapter 4 Concentration, pages 41 to 42.