Do I really need to slow down to speed up?
Short answer, yes!
I hear you say “Seriously, I don’t have the time for that sort of thing. I have deadlines to meet, my board meets in two weeks, there are staff issues I must deal with, and that is just at work! Where would I ever find the time for me to slow down? And do what anyway?”
Focused and purposeful downtime is now a recognised part of getting your mind, body, and spirit to work at their best. Why? Because they all need that downtime to rejuvenate so they can perform at their best. Playing fun games, singing, and dancing is part of Allan Bunting’s approach to coaching the Black Ferns and they are a world championship team!
It’s not flippant, it’s not a waste, and it’s critical. You need to release that pressure otherwise there is only one road, and it leads to burnout.
“But I seriously have no time!”
Wrong…you have a good 960mins every day. It’s not about time, it’s about priorities.
For those who know me, they know I really struggle to slow down and stop.
As a leader for over 25 years, there was always just the one more thing to do and then I could relax. The one last meeting to have, then I could take a break. The one more paper to read then I could sit with my better half. Only to have the next thing land or phone call to take.
What if you flipped it. What if you said to yourself “I’m going to take that break now then I’ll do that thing or I’m going to take a walk now then I’ll read that paper”.
It’s not about time, it’s about your priorities. Time is there and it keeps ticking away regardless of what you do. It’s your CHOICE.
I remember this all made sense to me rationally, but I still struggled to find time. These are the two hacks that really changed things for me.
Calling myself out: When I had planned to do a walk and I was on the verge of canceling because “I didn’t have time”. I would force myself to say, “That paper is more of a priority than my walk, than me” or “That meeting is more of a priority than my children”. It’s pretty brutal, but it works!
Starting off small: I decided that the biggest thing to help me slow down was meditation. But let me tell you, the number of excuses I used to not go there was incredible. It took me years to sit down to meditate. All that energy I wasted thinking about it, knowing it was the right thing for me but somehow not doing it. Until one day I thought to myself. What if I just meditated for 3mins? I have 3 mins…I can do this. So, I did! And it wasn’t that painful or hard…so then after a week of just simply doing 3 mins, I upped it to 5mins a day…and over months I slowly upped it to 10 and now I do a 15min practice every day.
Guided meditations helped me a lot. These are two apps to look into with a lot of great free content Breathe and Insight Timer.
What I’ve discovered is that by slowing down and taking the time for me, I have so much more energy, clarity, and focus to face the world, my organisation, my family and all its big and small challenges. From this foundation, I power through what needs to get done with a lot more resilience.
You’ve got 3 mins today out of your 960. Meditate or grab a cup of tea and stare into space or listen to a great song.
Put the mask on yourself first, prioritise you, and slow down to thrive again!