I would say to last couple of posters that my case is not typical and not for the faint of heart. I graduated in 1 year because I probably spent 6 months before I started planning everything out from SOPHAS to post-graduate job. I doubled up on classes. So if a normal semester load for someone is 3 or 4 classes, I would take 6. I also took several summer classes. I also opted for the capstone course instead of a thesis. Student Affairs did not believe me when I turned in my application to graduate. I planned for the practicum for the summer, and I networked like crazy to secure a job by the time I graduated. And there was a lot of luck involved.
Part of the reason I was able to do all of this is because I knew exactly what I wanted, and I did not waffle. The faculty saw that I knew what I wanted and I didn't need to be coddled and let me do what I wanted.
So, the three takeaways that I would take are
1) plan, plan, and plan in excruciating detail. I knew exactly what classes to take in what semester, and I knew what alternatives I could take if they were not available. I knew what practicum I wanted before I started
2) Know what you want. I often saw other classes or activities that seemed very interesting. If I took an extra class, I would still be in school. By knowing what I wanted, I could tune out distractions. My goal was to get out in a year, and I stuck by that.
3) Step it up. Any graduate student work their butt off and churn out a 15 page term paper. A lot of students did that, but they didn't stand out. I stood out because I wrote the concise 9 page paper with superb figures that parsimoniously summarized my points. The same goes with oral and PowerPoint presentations. Step it up and you will get noticed. Get noticed and faculty will go to bat for you by letting you do what you want, recommendations, job references, and jobs.
These were just my experiences and my opinions, I am sure they won't work for everyone.