Always in a Hurry? Learn to Slow Down

Now that we’ve had a little bit of time to adjust to the New Year, you may still be feeling a little antsy. Maybe your resolutions haven’t started yet, or maybe you’re looking ahead into the year, asking yourself what’s to come.

We are always moving at a “go, go, go” pace to try to get ahead of so many things all at once. But, have you ever noticed that in the midst of the craziness, you can suddenly start to make more errors, or have more breakdowns in communication?

The answer seems contradictory, but sometimes in order to efficiently speed up, we must slow down.

Moving too quickly can often lead to a variety of negative effects including:

• Mistakes
• Breakdowns in communication
• Poorer judgment in critical thinking
• Self-centeredness
• Stress and anxiety
• A bad team atmosphere

Tips for Slowing Down

If these sound familiar, no need to fret. There are a few easy ways that you can begin to slow down. From there, you may find that once you take a second to pause, you can work more efficiently and solve some of those problems a little bit easier.

• Focus on longer-term goals when you can. Instant gratification is nice, but not always the solution.
• Slow down your decision-making process. Create a process that allows you to pause at important moments/deadlines and evaluate as necessary.
• Be intentional with your relationships and communication. Pay attention to your surroundings and take your time when working with others.
• Make time for you. Create time in your schedule to gather your thoughts and make purposeful decisions.
• Know your priorities. The things that aren’t important right now can wait. This allows you more intentional time to focus on the things that need to get done.
• Expect the unexpected. Develop a plan for the things that come up without notice.

Finally, ask yourself why you are in such a hurry. Our world tells us that if we’re not moving quickly enough, we will be left behind.

So, when things get hectic, let’s figure out the best way to manage your time without going so fast that we burn ourselves out. If we can learn to slow down, we will be able to move faster toward our goals without all of those speedbumps and stressors in the middle.

By Evan Moore, LiveNOW Well-Being Specialist

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