When Efficiency Wins… but Connection Gets Left on the Platform

This week I read a story that made me smile and pause at the same time.

In 2025 the Swiss railways had their most punctual year on record. Only 1 in 17 trains late. That’s 94.1% on time. That is wildly impressive. It’s peak Switzerland, isn’t it?

Clocks aligned. Systems humming. Trains sliding in and out like choreography.

As someone who lives here, I feel the quiet pride of that. And yet… It stirred a question in me.

Because while the network got tighter and more efficient, I couldn’t help wondering: What happens when our lives become that optimized too? When everything runs on time…but something essential quietly goes missing?

The seduction of “on time”

Efficiency feels virtuous.

• fewer delays
• fewer mistakes
• fewer wasted minutes
• smoother days

It promises control. Competence. Professionalism.

In coaching and business, I see this everywhere:

• tighter calendars
• back-to-back Zoom calls
• inbox to zero
• automated workflows
• “maximising productivity”

We celebrate this like a gold medal. And to be fair — some of it matters. But here’s the tension I keep noticing:

We are getting better at moving fast. We are not always getting better at being close.

 

What the timetable can’t measure

A train arriving exactly at 08:02 is a measurable success.

But what isn’t measured?

• the conversation on the platform
• the extra minute holding the door
• the pause to help someone with their suitcase
• the eye contact
• the “Are you okay?”

Connection is inefficient. It takes time. It interrupts the schedule. It doesn’t scale neatly.

And yet…

It’s the very thing that makes the journey human.

Where I see this in real life

In the leaders and parents and founders I coach, the pattern is similar:

They run brilliant systems.

But they feel strangely disconnected. – From their team. From their partner. From themselves.

Calendars full. Hearts a bit empty.

They say things like:

“I’m doing everything right… so why does it feel off?”

Because life isn’t only a timetable.

It’s a relationship.

Efficiency optimises performance. Connection transforms people

A team can be:

• perfectly scheduled
• highly productive
• and still unable to share what really matters.

A family can:

• hit every activity on time
• and still feel unseen.

A leader can:

• deliver every KPI
• and still lose trust.

Because what people remember isn’t:

“Everything ran on time.”

It’s:

“Did you see me?”

“Did you hear me?”

“Did I matter?”

 

The irony I can’t ignore

The Swiss railways also reported something beautiful: connection punctuality reached 98.9%.

Not just trains on time.

Connections working. Transfers made. Journeys completed.

And suddenly that word hits differently.

Maybe that’s the deeper metaphor.

Not:

👉 “Was the train perfectly punctual?”

But:

👉 “Did people make the connection that mattered?”

 

A different kind of success metric

What if we measured our days like this instead?

Not:

• How many tasks did I clear?

But:

• Who did I really notice today?
• Where did I slow down long enough to listen?
• When did I choose presence over productivity?

What if leadership wasn’t: maximum throughput

…but: maximum trust.

What if parenting wasn’t: perfect logistics

…but: felt safety.

What if coaching wasn’t: efficient frameworks

…but: deeply human moments.

 

A gentle reframe

I’m not anti-efficiency. I love a good system.

(Anyone who lives in Switzerland learns to appreciate that fast 😄)

But I’m learning this: Efficiency should serve connection.

Not replace it.

Because a perfectly timed life that misses the people in front of you…

is still a missed connection.

 

3 Invitations to Stay Connected — Not Just Efficient

1. Build in one human pause
   Before the next task, meeting, or transition, pause for 30 seconds.
   Look up. Make eye contact. Ask one real question.
   Connection doesn’t need more time — it needs presence.
2. Let one moment run over
   Choose one interaction a day where you don’t rush to the next thing.
   Stay a little longer. Listen past the first answer.
   Efficiency can survive this. Relationship needs it.
3. Measure what can’t be optimised
   At the end of the day, don’t ask only “What did I get done?”
   Also ask:

• Who did I really notice?
• Where did I choose presence over pace?
• When did I let myself be human?

 

I believe efficiency is important – it keeps things moving.
AND connection tells us why it matters.

I love to connect, do reach out if you think I might be able to support you and your team in being more efficient and more connected.

I’m Sarah Cretegny, a Personal and Business Development Coach and Collaboration Catalyst. I create brave spaces where creative leaders and their teams – especially those committed to meaningful impact – can reconnect with who they truly are, so they can lead with greater clarity, courage, and purpose, even in uncertain times, and create sustainable impact.

I’m particularly effective when time is limited and the stakes are high. I draw on evidence-based coaching approaches, strengths expertise, and my lived experience of balancing leadership, family life, and international living. I’m deeply passionate about partnering with people to coach their wild, because the world needs more authentic leadership now more than ever.

I live in Lausanne, Switzerland and coach globally. www.coachyourwild.com