It’s Time To Slow Down

We are heading into a time where things will speed up. Some schools have already started up in parts of the United States and more will open late August and early September. Some businesses have fully reopened, while others are planning to return to the office in September, or perhaps not. The uncertainty of the Delta variant and its impact on daily life can feel like an app on your phone running in the background draining the battery. 

There is a lot in play. So much is moving fast. Burnout is all too common.

You can’t operate in high gear all the time. Oftentimes you need to slow down before you can speed up again. It can feel counterintuitive with so much going on. However, slowing down is essential to be at your best for the long haul.

Here’s an example from personal experience. In my own business, there are leads to generate, prospects to follow up with, client sessions to hold, newsletters to write and presentations to prepare. When the ideas and energy aren’t flowing, my default pattern is to press onward and get it done. 

I notice the voice of an inner critic telling me, “You need to sit down now, write and get this done. No time for anything else.” Then I hear another voice of a soft-spoken and compassionate internal part saying, “It’s ok to step away and let go for a while.”

The choice is then mine to make. Do I follow my default pattern to keep pushing forward or step away and slow down? 

What would happen if I actually did step away from the laptop and start a completely different activity, like pruning the rose bushes? So I tried it.

When I started pruning the roses, I was working quickly seeking efficiency to complete the task as fast as possible. When pruning a rose bush, acting quickly will yield a handful of thorns (albeit double layers of gardening gloves are a good idea). Then it occurred to me - A rose takes its time to grow from a chute, to a bud, to a beautiful flower. Since the rose takes its time to grow, I should take my time to prune it so it can bloom again.

In that conscious decision to slow down, I became fully present with the rose bush. My whole attitude and perspective shifted. I was no longer pressing, no longer pushing stones uphill. I was in the moment, slowing down. Sure enough, I entered a more creative space by slowing down. While pruning the roses, ideas started flowing for an article and a new presentation. Slowing down served as a reset and my work flowed easily.

Where can you take your foot off the gas pedal and slow down? For how long will you slow down - a few minutes, a few hours or even a few days? 

What opens up when you slow down?

Enjoy the remaining days of Summer!

Photo by Frans Van Heerden from Pexels