Pace of Life

Do you change your pace?

Can you adjust your pace depending on what you’re doing?

Life has got busier, there’s so much pressure on us to do even more and be a certain way.  It’s overwhelming and the pace just keeps building.

It’s creeping up on us slowly.  I think of it a bit like when you’re out in a pub and the conversation just gets louder.  No one intended to shout but you ended up getting caught up in the environment.  I’m sure no one intended to have this amount of pressure on themselves but there’s an expectation that we have to keep pace with those around us.

Even with all this pressure are there times we can change the pace we’re living?

I realised after coming back from holiday I was racing around the park with our puppy Roscoe so I could get back to get work done.  I gave myself 30 minutes to go for a walk, but during the whole time, I felt the pressure I created with the need that I was short on time and had to get back. 

Then one morning I took my coffee to the park sat down for a while and took in the autumn colours, noticed the flowers and the clouds in the sky.  I was there for 30 minutes but I came back feeling relaxed and in a much more positive mindset to work.  The job still got done, it took exactly the same amount of time, but I felt completely different.

There is some much pressure in our society to be busy, to be rushing and always think we could have done more.  No wonder a lot of us are feeling overwhelmed, exhausted and struggling to manage everyday tasks.

I’ve decided this autumn I’m using the mantra

“if it’s on the list it’s enough”.

I’m letting go of the pressure to do everything on the list.  I’ve got much more clarity to get the most important things done. I’m planning where there are opportunities to do things at a much slower pace.  A slower pace = less pressure

It’s a hard habit to break but I’m much more aware of where I go into overdrive and now choose times to take my foot off the gas.

One thing that has really helped is having co-working focus hours, I meet a friend in person or online, set a task to do in the hour and check in at the end how I got on. I’m often amazed at how much I achieve compared to when I’m distracted over a whole morning.  This concentrated focus and faster-paced part of my day gives me the space to slow down the pace and take time for more creative work to happen at other times.

I’m starting to take some of the pressure off myself and feeling so much better for it.

Changing pace

Is there something you do every day that you could do in a more relaxed slower way?

Try taking in your surroundings whilst you’re doing the thing and see if anything shifts for you.

I’d love to hear how you find ways to alter the pace of your day.