Differently
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Differently
Slow Down to Speed Up
What if rushing through life is actually slowing us down? What if the narrative of faster always means better, more productive, and more successful isn't working?
The constant urgency we feel has become so normalized that we barely notice it anymore – it's become the air we breathe. When we're moving at such a fast pace we often fabricate unnecessary stress without realizing it: sitting on the edge of our seats, stomachs clenched, constantly watching the clock. This creates a persistent low-grade stress that chips away at our well-being and productivity.
Let's talk about how small moments of intentional pausing - can dramatically change outcomes and experiences.
Remember: leading your life begins with leading yourself, and sometimes we need to slow down to speed up.
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A deep change in the way that we live requires a deep change in the way that we think. I'm Carla Reeves and this is Differently. What if the most important thing you could do right now is to slow down? I don't mean sit on the couch and veg all day, but to pause long enough to catch your breath and see what's really going on inside. Hey, thanks for tuning in. If you've been listening to the podcast for a while, thank you so much. If you've been sharing the podcast with others, which I've been noticing, we have new listeners. Thank you so much for sharing. And if you're new to the podcast, welcome.
Speaker 1:Today's topic is slow down to speed up. I know we've heard this concept and for high achievers, ambitious, driven people, this can kind of bend the brain and, honestly, the first time I heard it I didn't believe it and I wasn't even interested in the idea. Lately, I've been noticing friends, clients and people in general reluctant to take the time to do the things that they know they need and want to do, because they're trapped by what feels like urgency, lack of time, too much to do, and while I know there's a lot on your plate and things tugging for your attention and work to be done and and and and. Much of what perpetuates this urgency and pace in our lives can be examined and shifted. It's time we question and challenge these ideas that are running our life and often robbing our life. I've been doing this inquiry for myself for the last five years or so, and here's what I see. The problem I see, and that I've been observing, is that there's this constant rush and urgency we feel in our daily lives. It's just there, it's almost like the air that we breathe, and it takes just pausing to actually observe it and notice it. And one of the things that I do is just ask, start to ask yourself is this necessary? Is this pace working? Is this aligned for me and our family and what we're up to? You know that, with the many things that are tugging at your attention, are they the real things that matter, or are they things that you've just become accustomed or taught other people that you will do, but they don't match and align with what you're up to now. The illusion that moving faster is going to get us somewhere quicker is a lie that we have been told or that we have witnessed, that we have watched for so long in our culture and I'm actually beginning to believe that the opposite is true.
Speaker 1:What I've experienced over the last five years in experimenting with this and challenging it and just trying something different in my own life is that slowing down actually accelerates my progress and momentum. And I feel entirely different when I'm going through the day doing my work or doing things around the house, or doing things with my children or my husband. I can get a lot done without sitting on the edge of my seat and my stomach clenched. That's how I used to work at my desk. I don't think I even realized that I was doing that until I started to pay attention, like how do I feel during my workday, how do I sit at my desk, how does my body feel? And that's when I noticed that I literally sat on the edge of my seat. My stomach was clenched. I'm watching the clock, feeling urgency, which created like a very low grade of stress all the time.
Speaker 1:The other thing I've noticed is in taking time to slow down, it allows me to be more intentional about managing my mind, checking my perspective and aligning my actions instead of living in autopilot. And this, my friend, is good for you. It's good for everyone and everything around you, taking frequent breaks that actually get me out of my head. This has been one of the most powerful things that I've been learning to do is kind of pay attention to my energy and notice when my energy drops. That's a perfect time to step away from my desk or go grab a little bite to eat, or go take a walk or do something entirely different, maybe something creative, to return me to a state of flow, and then I can return to my desk much more productive instead of just spinning my wheels and wasting time Examining repeated patterns in my life that have gotten in my way over and over again. This is some of the healing, I think, work that happens when we slow down long enough to actually watch ourselves and watch our patterns and watch when we keep tripping up over the same things again and again, and I think the last one that I'll talk about today is just slowing down to speed up.
Speaker 1:Sometimes it's just pausing in the moment so that I can actually make a choice instead of running an autopilot, and this can be the difference between just making motions and making meaningful motions that actually lead to what you want, and this in a. I've seen this in a few clients over the last week or so. One client she just started pausing her her children were getting in an argument and instead of rushing in and stepping in, she slowly walked and paused before she even got there and changed her reaction. Instead of reacting, she responded to her children. It was a different experience for her. It was a different experience for her children.
Speaker 1:Say, your spouse says one thing and your blood starts to boil. Something you can do here is just stopping and saying hey, you just said this, and it made me feel like this Is that what you intended? I've done that many, many times with my husband and I can't tell you, but almost every single time I asked that question, 98% of the time, I was completely wrong in my assumption of what he meant. So it's things like this slowing down to speed up. It's in the small moments where we have an opportunity to change something ever so slightly that can change the motions and course of our life. Lastly, I have noticed that I actually get more done when I'm calm, focused and present.
Speaker 1:How about you? I want you to think about, as you listen to me, talk about my own inquiry into this what is the strain for you? What's in the way for you of slowing down to speed up. What would be possible in slowing down in your life and where and what would that look like? Get curious.
Speaker 1:And a paceometer, which I'd never even heard of a paceometer. But a speedometer measures your current speed at any given moment, like on your car, while a paceometer measures your overall rhythm and sustainability in that In life and work. A speedometer approach is going to keep us frantically busy, but often ineffective and exhausted. The paceometer approach helps us make consistent progress through rhythms of work and rest, ultimately taking us further. What's your pace, friend? Is it producing the outcomes you're after?
Speaker 1:Come explore this further in my free class this month, in August, we're doing slow down to speed up. Come join me. It's virtual, it's free, it's on August 15th. Join me for conversation, guided writing and time to reflect. August is a perfect time to set yourself up for finishing the year a little differently. There's a link to save your spot in the show notes. And remember leading your life begins with leading yourself and sometimes we need to slow down to speed up. Thank you for making it all the way to the end and thank you for listening to Differently. If you enjoyed this episode, will you please go leave a five-star review and share it with someone you love. Goodbye for now. I'll see you next week.