| Articles » How To Slow Down a Tempo That's Out of Control |
|
How To Slow Down a Tempo That's Out of Control |
| by Sally Stanleigh |
|
| One of the top trends in society and culture is that everything
is “speeding up.” You can blame computers, email, the
Internet, globalization, mobile devices, low cost travel, whatever
you like. The result is 24/7 access to goods and services, multi-tasking,
meals in minutes, hectic households, microwave moms, meals on the
run, insecurity, and individuals (and organizations) that want everything
tomorrow. The result is stress, anxiety, a lack of sleep, a blurring
of boundaries between work and home, work-life imbalance and, conversely,
an interest in slowing things down. |
|
| So, how do we slow things down? |
| |
| 1. Develop the art of savouring the moment. |
|
| As we strive to meet the expectations of speeding up we also need
to stop focusing on the ‘doing’ bit and ask ourselves
to focus on the ‘being’ bit. This means being present
in the moment. This simple act provides a welcome release of tension
and clears the head. |
| |
| 2. Celebrate the small victories along the way. |
|
| How often have we worked hard and fast on a particular project or
assignment, whether for work or personal goal and never stopped to
celebrate our progress? The very act of celebration and acknowledgement
at milestones can help us to release stress, savour the moment and
build a more positive outlook about the work ahead. |
| |
| 3. Consider the unanticipated consequences of speeding up before rushing in. |
|
| Before we rush to work harder and go further we may want to consider
the consequences of this action. Will it generate what we mean it
to? So often, we rush to make changes to achieve specific objectives
such as cost savings and end up with a consequence we didn’t
anticipate such as reduced quality, which may trigger unanticipated
consequences such as something that is not good for us and that we
don’t really like. |
| |
| 4. Give yourself the gift of time to refresh and rejuvenate yourself. |
|
| As we rush around to execute the endless list of tasks in our daily
life we need to think about our most precious resource on earth—time.
We all realize that time cannot be reclaimed; once it is past it’s
lost forever. But how seriously do we take this fact? It’s amazing
what positive effects can be gained by giving yourself, routinely,
a gift of time—time
to refresh and rejuvenate without any agenda at all. So give yourself
a day or even an hour or two each week of unstructured time to relax
and wind down. You’ll find it a spiritually lifting experience. |
| |
| 5. Simplify things. |
|
| When life gets too complicated it’s time to simplify our life’s
structure and process and also our culture and mission. We may need
to re-assess our priorities and just do what is absolutely necessary
to stay in control. Or, we may want to simplify
the way we’re trying to get things done. |
| |
| 6. Take responsibility for your own choices. |
|
| Owning up to our own choices is a liberating action. If you fear that
others may hold you back, recognize that you have created that “truth”
and given it strength. In reality, your belief can hold you back but
no one else can. Why blame others? Take responsibility for your own
choices and life situation. You are here because you have a lesson
to learn. So let go of the blame and relinquish it to a lesson learned;
you’ll find it a great stress reliever that slows down your
heart rate and simplifies your mind. |
|
| Our obsession with technology and efficiency, whether
it’s right or wrong, is a fact of life. To maintain a work-life
balance it’s important to do what we can to slow things down
so that we remain both sane and healthy. |
|
| © Business Improvement Architects |
