Activity Does Not Equal Achievement

If you want to keep up with the speed of life, slow down

Hello there - in a rushed world,

Here comes your weekly permission to un-rush and stress less.

Timeless insights and impulses to re-think the way we rush through life.

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INSIGHT

Activity Does Not Equal Achievement

If you want to keep up with the speed of life, slow down

I am a firm believer in the concept of “as-well-as” as opposed to the concept of things, people, or situations just being “either-or”.

The world tries to sell us the concept that polar opposites are limiting. I don’t buy it. In most cases, if you are this as well as that you are much better off. As the old saying goes, there is always two sides of a coin.

„Living SLOW is not about eliminating action from your life. It’s about giving each moment the time and attention it deserves.“  –  Carl Honoré

Having lived in Tokyo I learned a thing or two from the Japanese how to “survive” the buzzing hustle and bustle of a crazy crowded, noisy, and blinking 37 million inhabitant’s city. Walking through this city makes you feel overwhelmed and overstimulated. But every once in a while, I turned a corner and found myself in an amazingly quiet, small temple which gave me some peace and quiet. The noise of the city was gone for a moment.

So, amid the chaos there can always be found some islands of sanity and tranquility. You have to look for it and cherish some quiet moments.

My other experience is that the Japanese walk through their capital with an invisible aura or protective mantle of air around them. That’s how it felt to me. It functioned as a buffer between them and the noise and crowds of other people so that one does not go mad with the masses. Self-protection, so to speak.

This is about staying with yourself when there is hustle and bustle and constant activity around you.

Self-Discipline And Self-Mastery

This is about stillness inside of you, which is not stagnancy — as you are always evolving.

In an overcrowded, overstimulated, overcomplex world, we must learn to reflect on ourselves in new ways.

Even though slowing down is considered rather inappropriate in our busy world.

What we need to embrace is that slowing down does not mean less acceleration.

Rather, it means that we must learn to stay with ourselves when we are permanently pushed by a hectic world.

Let’s rethink how slowness helps our speed

“Each of us has a unique, purposeful calling and assignment that only we can accomplish with our talents, skills, and experiences. As we go inward with life's unknowns, silence ultimately enables us to cultivate clarity and connection.” - George Raveling

Who Is In Charge Of You?

Do you feel exposed to the external forces of stress, hecticness, and pressure as if they make you bounce around like a ping-pong ball?

You are like that lightweight plastic ball with a hollow body being struck by the paddle of the hammering, speeding world from one end of the table to another.

But you are tired of being that hollow body and your weapon to fight against this is to be filled up with a sense for yourself and an awareness that slowness fosters high-end performance.

Researchers have discovered that people exhibiting the rare trait of patience make more progress toward their goals and are more satisfied when they achieve them (particularly if those goals are difficult) compared with less patient people. They are also better friends and neighbors and enjoy better mental and overall health.

Polar Opposites Are Not Limiting

We can be patient, pause and slow down a bit while we keep moving forward and take advantage of a high-speed world.

The important thing is to learn to appreciate differences and to combine the best of two seemingly opposite worlds. Fast and Slow.

• Think about which slow way helps you to do better and choose a respective way, perhaps supported by modern tech, to realize a more balanced way in your daily life.

• Slowing down helps us to see more clearly, so we can drop less important things.

• Give yourself permission to slow down — it doesn’t mean to speed less.

Activity does not equal achievement.

photo © Alberto Zanetti on Unsplash

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IMPULSE

Curated stories on the topic of slowing down and stressing less, designed to open up new ways of looking at things.

Here’s the cognitive case for why slower might be better.

Individual workers aren’t necessarily getting more productive; by and large, they’re just being asked to do more and more–and there comes a point of diminishing returns, no matter what digital tools are available to help.

When we slow down, we notice both the details and their potential repercussions. We ask more and better questions and come to more and better conclusions. The less important things fall by the wayside as we focus more slowly yet effectively on the things with the greatest impact.

You know all about why multitasking is bad and meditation is good. Here’s the cognitive case for why slower might be better.

Glorious visions in animation and performance at TED

Using animation, projections, and her own moving shadow, artist Miwa Matreyek performs a gorgeous, meditative piece about inner and outer discovery at TEDGlobal (2010). Slow down, take a quiet 10 minutes, and dive in.

Slow cabins in Ireland

This looks so cool to me. Slowing down in a magical location, in the middle of nature.

I found this website that offers “slow cabins”, so far in Ireland, but they work on more locations. An off-grid cabin surrounded by nothing but silence, tranquility, and endless nature. Escaping the hustle and bustle of your daily life. And. Just. Be.

Their concept is to provide a slow experience, raise off-grid awareness, and regenerate nature buildings in Europe. They want to give visitors the opportunity to slow down and disconnect from everyday stress.

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INDEPTH

For More Creative Output Slow Down And The Magic Happens

We are constantly in a hurry and under pressure. Taking time or being condemned to slowness by external circumstances is an unloved condition, perceived as “wasted time”.

But keeping up a constant speed leads to mistakes and we spend time cleaning them up again. It is easy to lose sight of the essentials and the ability to focus in the rush.

Conscious control of a situation requires full attention. When we start moving too fast, we often don't see what we need to see.

If you like to read more about the connection between slowing down and creating more, read my article here over on Medium » »