Return to Slow Living

In an age where everything is moving fast, and most communication can be instantaneous, it can be easy to get swept away and lose focus on life experiences. We're told to hustle like a boss and multitask or you're going to be left behind. If we're focusing so much on go, go, go how can we appreciate time spent in the journey?

Slow living is a concept to describe living life at your own pace, usually more leisurely and yes, slow. Instead of running around frantically trying to get ten things done at once, if you're trying to return to slow living you would choose one or two tasks to dedicate your time and attention to. Less than 2.5% of the population can effectively multitask. As The Cleveland Clinic states:

"We’re really wired to be monotaskers, meaning that our brains can only focus on one task at a time, says neuropsychologist Cynthia Kubu, PhD. 'When we think we’re multitasking, most often we aren’t really doing two things at once. But instead, we’re doing individual actions in rapid succession, or task-switching,' she says."

It takes time for our brains to switch from one task to another which can lead to less quality work and more errors. As I start approaching my fifth decade in life, I'm reflecting on what I have and have not achieved. Most of my fondest memories have been spending time with family and friends traveling or even just sitting on the couch visiting with a cup of hot tea. None of them involve being rushed to finish a project or trying to juggle support tickets with daily meetings.

As cliche as it is, we only have one life. Ryder Carroll, the creator of The Bullet Journal, often states that "we can't make time, we can only take time." Meaning, once time has been used we can't replace it as we can with money. With that in mind, slow living seems like the best course of action. You can appreciate all of life's small joys as you work toward your goals. We'll talk about different aspects of slow living over time, one of which is getting out in nature.

For the past month, I've been starting my days by stepping outside barefoot and spending five minutes getting morning sunlight before I look at my phone or drink caffeine. Spending time with my feet in the dewy grass, feeling the sun on my skin, while listening to the birds trill sets the day on a calming path. There are many other health benefits for morning sunlight, including regulating your circadian clock and releasing dopamine. Andrew Huberman is a huge proponent of using light for health. While I can't say I've

felt a night and day difference during my experiment, I do know that I've started falling asleep a little faster and staying asleep. I've also come to enjoy my time in the morning with nature before the day begins.

What's one step you would be willing to take today to live life at your own pace?