Slow Down

Many cultures in modern society move lightening fast. People set self improvement goals of getting organized, getting more done in a day, or of meeting more people quickly. Folks should take into consideration, however, the possible self improvement goal of simply slowing down. It isn’t an easy goal to make in this day and age, but it is worth a shot.

A fast-paced world results in a population of rushed people who are stressed and overloaded. This is not to say that a quick pace is all that bad,many people go about their lives at a quick pace and are thoroughly content. People will never know if a slower pace is right for them until they try it. When setting goals for a course of self improvement, it is a good idea to make an attempt at slowing down to see if a less hectic lifestyle helps everything else fall into place.

Slowing down does not necessarily mean that people should sell their condos to go live by a lake and fish everyday. Rather, it refers to being more selective about the activities people choose to engage in. Instead of saying yes to every obligation : baking cupcakes for the kids’ classroom party, meeting a coworker for racquetball after work, chairing a volunteer organization : people should decide which activities are truly enjoyable and truly beneficial, and then say no to every other invitation. How nice would it be to not have a calendar filled with activities? Wouldn’t it be great to have a couple of nights free to just see where the night winds up? When people stop loading up their calendars with obligations, their time becomes amazingly less rigidly planned. Families benefit from more downtime too, because they get to spend more time together doing spontaneous activities instead of just getting shuttled from one activity to the next. Breaking the monotony is one of the great reasons to try to slow down.

An interesting thing happens to people when they slow down and spend less time running around accomplishing various tasks: they get healthier. A fast paced life lends itself to stress, which in turn can have a physiological effect on a person. As people slow down they may find that they are getting sick less often, they have more energy, and they generally have a higher sense of wellbeing. More downtime allows for people to actually rest their bodies instead of being in constant motion. Remember, a body needs to rest once in a while. If a person tries to slow down and winds up miserable, it’s fine to revert back to old habits. A slower pace is not for everyone, and many people thrive on staying busy and involved in every little thing. Until a person makes a conscious effort to slow down, however, they will never know if it indeed suits them. There is no harm in trying, and it may in fact be one of the best self improvement goals a person makes if it leads to a more peaceful life.

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