When Life Slows You Down | EP 503

🔗 Mentioned on this Episode: Show Notes 👈

Have you ever felt like the universe hit pause right when things were finally gaining momentum in your business?

In this episode I’m sharing what happened when life slowed me down—right in the middle of a big push—and why I now see that interruption as one of the best things that could’ve happened.

You’ll hear the simple reflection ritual that saved me 40+ hours of rework, the White-Space Day strategy that my high-level clients now swear by, and a few clarity questions to help you use rest as a powerful tool—not a setback.

If you're building something meaningful and you want it to feel sustainable, this one’s for you. Tap play—and if you want more honest behind-the-scenes reflections, head to the link in the show notes and join my weekly email list. It’s where I share the deeper stuff I don’t always post publicly.

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Chapters

• 0:00 Embracing Unwanted Slowdowns
• 1:29 Finding Value in Forced Pauses
• 3:44 Space for Reflection and Growth
• 6:02 The Detour That Led to Better
• 9:35 Questions for Your Week Ahead

Transcript

Sheila: 0:02

If you're staring at half-finished projects and wondering why life keeps hitting pause, listen up. Those forced slowdowns you hate. Well, they can actually save you from costly rework and deliver a sharper, more aligned result than sprinting ever could. In this episode, I'll show you how the space you didn't ask for might be the very thing that moves you forward faster. You didn't ask for might be the very thing that moves you forward faster.

Sheila: 0:32

Hi, welcome to the Connect with Sheila Botelho podcast. I'm committed to helping you reconnect to your purpose, elevate your wellbeing and build your version of a happy, successful life. And on today's solo chat, we are going to talk about the strange magic of life slowing you down even when you don't want it to. This is for those of us who love to move fast, create fast and get things done. And this is for you, especially if you've been feeling like things aren't moving at the pace you'd like right now or you're feeling behind. So recently I recorded a mini-sode called what If You're Not Behind? And wouldn't you know it?

Sheila: 1:14

Life soon after decided to give me the real-time experience of that exact message. I find that happens a lot. I had a pile of tasks sitting in various projects, some just needing my final touches and some needing to be delegated. And yet other things in my life started demanding my attention, personal things that have taken more time and emotional energy than expected, which I'll share. More about that behind the scenes stuff in a future episode. But for now, just to know this, it has been one of those seasons and because of it I've had to really double down on rest and I've had to look at what's actually doable and prioritize the highest value things, pushing a few things to a later date. And as someone who loves to ideate fast, to execute fast and bring things to life quickly, this has been really humbling. Slowing down when you want to sprint not easy, and here's what I've come to know. Some of the most pivotal shifts in my life came from the unexpected pause buttons that just happened to show up out of nowhere. Now, I say that intentionally pause buttons, because that's exactly what they feel like Annoying, yes, but also really powerful, because when we're forced to slow down, we begin to see things we would have missed. We notice what's actually aligned and what we're doing, perhaps just out of habit or pressure.

Sheila: 2:59

Now, lately I've been doing the essentials. Now, lately I've been doing the essentials, getting the main priorities taken care of. And behind it all, there's been this voice in my head saying just finish this project, just get it done, because we all know how much mental bandwidth unfinished decisions take up. Have you ever felt like that, that constant spinning in your mind, those questions that we ask ourselves like should I name it this or should maybe this name would be better? Is this the right format, or what's the right timeline? And then finally deciding. It feels so freeing Because until decisions are made, it's like you're in a holding pattern, and yet rushing the decision can double your work if it ends up being out of alignment.

Sheila: 3:53

So it really is a dance. It's like don't wait forever for perfection, but don't rush through something your future self will need to untangle, either through something your future self will need to untangle either. And then there are the moments where you're just ready to go, but the timing, the logistics, the people, maybe even the resources just are not ready. And that is where I found myself lately, and I've decided to see this forced slowdown as a gift, because the moment I leaned into it, a new piece of information came to light about one of my projects that made me so grateful that I hadn't pushed forward too quickly, I would have had to backtrack and redo so many different things, and now I get to move forward with more clarity. It really reminded me of something I experienced when my kids were little. Life was slower, life felt smaller, more spacious, and I didn't realize it at the time, but that pace gave me insight and real presence into who they were becoming and into who I was becoming.

Sheila: 5:14

We need space for things like this, and our businesses are no different. We can get so busy doing planning, producing, that we lose touch with what's really happening. Space lets us reflect, reflect on all of those different things that we've been putting our attention on, that perhaps we may have started out believing they were the right things for us, but it's only when we reflect that we might find out the truth that maybe it's not the best thing for us. Space lets us adjust and course correct and, most importantly, it helps us reconnect with who we really are and the truth of what we're doing. So, yes, based on Monday's episode, I had been feeling a bit behind, but I also realize I've been given a pause and that pause gave me the time to see some things that I missed, to avoid wasting time on the wrong direction and to create something I'm actually even prouder of, and so I really feel there's like a wisdom to the spaciousness that sometimes is dropped in our lap. And now there's something that I only recently realized about myself like recently, the last few years is I tend to make the most of things. I tend to find the growth, the insight, the good, and I feel like it's a really beautiful trait, but sometimes it can also lead me to overextend, to tolerate too much or to carry more than I need to. And while that's another conversation for another day, I wanted to say it here because maybe you feel like that too, and this is why we need space To reflect, recalibrate and to receive. So if you're in a season that feels slower than you'd like, I invite you to trust it. You might not be behind. Actually, you might just be exactly where you're meant to be.

Sheila: 7:41

Let me share another story with you. Last year, I was gearing up for a collaboration that had the potential to elevate my brand in a big way. I was excited, the timing felt right and I had mentally carved out the space for it in my calendar. And then nothing. The other party went quiet, their timeline shifted and the momentum stalled and at first I was frustrated. I kept thinking what a missed opportunity. But in the unexpected space that opened up, something else happened had the opportunity to take a trip where I met some people who I otherwise never would have met, and I had the space to actually create a whole new arm of work inside of my brand. So this is something I totally would have missed had I been in this collaboration, because I would have put so much energy into it and collaborations are really wonderful. But I realized looking back, that had that gone forward, a lot of my bandwidth would have been taken up. And because it's a collaboration, you have a lot more waiting in between things at times because you're wanting to get consensus on ideas. So it all worked out. This unexpected space, really this pause, made room for something better, something I wouldn't have known to ask for, and you know it has really shaped the way this year has gone in a way that I never would have expected. It really is a reminder that I return to often.

Sheila: 9:41

Trust the delays, trust the detours. They often carry the answers we didn't know we were looking for. So here are some questions for you to reflect on this week. Where are you feeling behind in your life or business? Think about that. What is the last thing that you thought about? Where you're like, oh, this is just not moving fast enough. And then, when you think about that, perhaps there's something on the other side of that. If you were like to flip it over, what is the gift of where you're at right now in your business? If you feel like things are moving slower? Maybe it gives you time to test things more than you would if things were moving faster. Maybe you actually have the opportunity to connect more with your clients or your customers, because things aren't moving at the speed of light and this can inform on where you go next.

Sheila: 10:52

Another question what would happen if you trusted the timing instead of resisting it? Sometimes I look back and think, oh, the time I spent trying to push through, push through, push through. I could have actually just gone on a vacation. I could have just like, completely stepped away from my technology and done something completely different, and everything just would have worked out. We don't always know that in the moment, but sometimes it's worthy of considering. Always know that in the moment, but sometimes it's worthy of considering.

Sheila: 11:27

Another question what clarity might be available to you right now that you're too busy to notice? Do you ever have those moments where you're in the middle of doing something and you kind of have a thought forming in the back of your mind and you knew that if you just shut everything down so you could really follow the breadcrumbs of that thought, you could have a really big aha moment. That's what I'm talking about. Right, if you weren't too busy to notice, if you weren't too busy to do that, maybe the idea would land and it could shift everything for you. Sometimes it's those small things that can shift everything.

Sheila: 12:15

Another question where have past pauses in your life led to something unexpectedly good? Always look back for evidence that you've been taking care of and I ask questions like this one a lot because it helps you really consider is this thing I'm pursuing, mine to pursue, or was it just a good idea someone threw out there? Or maybe it was just a good idea you threw out there, but it wasn't totally aligned with where you want to be. Give yourself space to reflect and see what surfaces, when you're not trying to force it and not trying to make it all make sense right away If you want to follow along more closely with the behind the scenes of what I'm building and share in some of the deeper reflections that I don't always post publicly. Make sure that you subscribe to my weekly email. You can find the link in the show notes to sign up for that. I so appreciate you being here. Have an exquisite rest of your week. Big blessings, thank you.