Day’s work is done. You lie down on your couch, open TV and decide to watch something nice and relaxing. I love those moments when you can just reset your brain!
Well, a couple of weeks ago, on a Friday evening, I had that kind of a moment with the children. We decided to watch Madagascar 3. Cartoon started. After 5 minutes I was already got out of breath.
“Too fast. Way too fast for me.” I said and felt annoyed.
The world is getting faster. There’s no doubt about that. TV is only one example of that.
Bad thing is that fast rhythm gets easily under your skin. It affects your subconscious. Makes you do things faster than you would naturally do.
Your start walking faster, talking faster, eating faster. Live faster than what’s natural for you.
Fast is fine if it’s temporary. If unnatural rhythm becomes permanent, it causes you constant mental and physical stress. And in the long run that is harmful to your health and happiness.
In my work, I’ve experienced it many times; I see how in a fast tempo other bloggers publish articles, Facebook updates and Instagram photos. Soon I notice that I’ve started try to do the same. Be as fast as them.
“Living under unnatural time pressures causes a myriad of psychological, social and physical ailments.”,
writes Linda Buzzell in her article Slow Down: How Our Fast-Paced World Is Making Us Sick.
I agree with Linda. When I’ve tried to be faster than I naturally am the consequences have always been bad.
Stress goes up and relaxation goes down when I lose the connection to my natural rhythm. Share on XThe more cortisol I have in my blood, the less quality I have in my life. And in my work too.
But how to protect yourself from the fast-paced world? After all, we still want to watch TV, and we need to be in working life.
Balancing the fast rhythm with slower, more natural rhythms is important.
We can’t change the world, but we can change ourselves. We can learn to include slower moments into our everyday life to balance the compulsory fast ones.
I’ve developed a habit that I go take some firewood in the middle of my work day.
I’ve learned to do it in my own natural rhythm, not in a hurry. And I’ve learned not to just go and take the wood; instead, on my way to woodshed, I consciously pay attention to different rhythms of nature around me. I let them slow me down.
This kind of 5 minutes break is an important stress relief and balancing act in the middle of my workday;
I feel my break, when I’m connected to my own natural rhythm and I can see how slowly clouds are passing by, send my subconscious a crucial message that there’s really no need to hurry; the world and others can hurry, but my rhythm to work and live is just fine.
It’s ok to sit down for a while. I just need to make that choice to do so.
A while ago I met Pequ Nieminen, the other founder of the biggest Finnish website for holistic wellbeing, slow lifestyle, and spiritual growth called “Slow Down Your Life” (Hidasta Elämää).
I became so happy when I heard that they had taken Finland’s first step towards the internationally successful Slow TV format and done Slow TV series “The Magic Of Lapland”.
I’m privileged that I can go and take firewood and watch the oldest TV in the world to balance my workday.
Most of you can’t do that but what you can do is to take advantage of modern technology.
So have a cup of coffee or tea, press play and allow yourself a slow moment in the middle of this fast-paced world.
It makes so good, for all of us.
