Ever since we left London to live life on the road, we’ve been taking things slower than before which hasn’t been too hard anyway since we had a pretty amazing but hectic life. When you live in such a vibrant city, you lose sight of how much you end up doing and spread yourself too thin as a result.
Call it a mid-life crisis but we started yearning for more meaningful experiences rather than just going through life like two headless (and pretty exhausted) chickens which led us to hit the road for an indefinite amount of time.
But since 2020 has been such an – to use a polite term – unexpected year, we were forced to pack our bags, come back home and rent a flat, all in just a space of a few days, because travel (and life) had been pretty much put on hold until further notice.
And, as it happened to a lot of people during these trying times, we’ve been noticing more and more the importance of living slowly, taking each day as it comes and making the best of what we’ve got.
What the heck is slow living anyway?
Slow living is an offshoot of the grassroots Slow Food movement that started in Italy in the 80s as a protest to the opening of a McDonald’s in Rome with the aim to preserve local food culture and oppose the rise of fast living and all of its potential negative consequences.
To put it simply, it’s less about the pace and more about living mindfully, choosing to take part in experiences that really matter to you and savouring each moment fully.
But how can I incorporate more of it into my daily life? Read on to find out some of the things that have been working for me:
Know your non-negotiables
For me, knowing myself is massively important in order to live a happier, more fulfilled life in my own terms. Life is already complicated enough for us to be navigating it without an emotional compass, not knowing what makes our souls sing or what pushes our buttons.
So whether you want to do your soul exploring through journaling, therapy or chatting with a trusted friend is up to you but, I can guarantee that it’ll help you live life more mindfully when you know what matters most to you.
Start your day right
Everyone raves about how important it is to have a morning routine and how the highly successful people do it so you should too. But I’m not a morning person so, for most of my life, I dreaded early mornings and my main achievement would just be not to battle with the snooze button and get to school/work on time looking slightly presentable and semi-conscious until it was time to get back to bed again.
Anything would be worth those precious extra minutes under the covers even if this survival-mode routine caused me to start off my day with the wrong foot, stumbling upon whatever life threw at me. Not until long ago I decided this morning freestyling routine wasn’t serving me well and it had to end.
I started changing and fine-tuning it until it worked for me, my lifestyle and my sleeping patterns. Yes, it’s still painful to wake up in the morning, but I know how beneficial it is to take things slower, having time to get ready and eat properly because it helps me feel more in control and more focused to carry on with my day.
Digital declutter
Guilty as charged.
The internet is probably one of humankind’s greatest inventions but, like with anything, it’s better if used in moderation. I try to be intentional in most areas of my life but this is the one I most struggle with. Living so far away from my family and friends means that social media is the easiest way to keep in touch with them but it also means that I’m vulnerable to the power of the algorithm sucking me right into a void of mindless scrolling every time I’m online (Ever watched The Social Dilemma?).
As I mentioned in my Beginners Working From Home Tips article, I removed most of the notifications from my phone and I also try to keep it as far away as possible from me which is a start, but there’s still a lot of work to be done on that front that will help to keep me more anchored in my real- life experiences.
Spend time in nature
Much has been said about the benefits of spending time in nature but it’s always worth emphasising it since most of us live in big cities and the complexity of our lives slowly pushes us away from being outdoors more often. Being in nature has huge healing effects on our wellbeing as it calms our senses and makes us more grounded.
Good news is that you don’t need to go to the nearest park to reap some of the benefits if you’re unable to. Make sure to take a few moments every day to look at clouds moving in the sky or care for your favourite flower and, if you have green thumbs, even better, as you can grow your own plants and observe in detail how it is to be in true sync with Mother Nature’s pace.
JOMO (or the power of saying no)
Ah! There’s such an abundance of information that can be accessed at the touch of a button and so little life to keep on top of all of these interesting things that no amount of ‘multi-tasking’ or scrolling will get us feeling like we’re doing/being/seeing/experiencing enough! The struggle is real and it has a name: FOMO – or Fear of Missing Out.
It’s tempting to live life to the full and embrace all of its amazing possibilities but, with time, we’ll get worn out and will probably lack a sense of direction. Been there, done that. So once you know what matters most to you, it’ll be much easier to differentiate things that you think you should be doing from the things that you’d rather be doing instead.
Take a deep breath
Breathing is a powerful self-regulating tool and, by paying attention to the way we breathe, we can more easily tell what’s going on within ourselves. Stop for a second and observe your breathing. Is it shallow, fast or constricted? Or is it relaxed and flowing naturally?
Just by stopping for a moment and bringing attention to the breath, we hit a reset button and we become more mindful, calmer and more focused on the present, being closer to our true natural state.
The power of gratitude
In our modern world, being competitive is part of our daily lives and it’s highly encouraged, and whilst some form of competition isn’t a bad thing in itself, it makes us operate from a place of scarcity and of never feeling that we are or have enough.
Such a mindset is dangerous because it prevents us from actually enjoying the things that we already have as we’re constantly focused on what next big thing we should pursue instead, sapping our own energy.
Practising gratitude is a powerful way to help us observe, identify and count our blessings as it trains our brains to become more aware of the little things in life that actually matter. It also helps us become more appreciative and anchored in the present moment, reminding us that a more content and fulfilling life doesn’t necessarily equate to achieving big things but being grateful for the little things that are dotted around our daily lives making us smile.
Create space for being
People tend to confuse being productive with being busy, so most of us tend to fill up our time with more and more things to do, and when we’re not doing anything, we’re taken by an immense sense of guilt and worthlessness.
But, in fact, being productive has less to do with what you do and more with how you do them. The highest productive people can do more in less time because of many factors, but one thing is certain, they know and value the importance of taking time off. If you particularly struggle with this, I’d recommend that you block some time in your calendar to make sure you take the time to do things that you actually enjoy doing, be it reading, cooking, painting, meditating or the good ol’ sweet FA.
Most of us have to work like dogs just to keep our heads above water so we forget that our body and brain need a break to rebalance, reconnect and recharge for us to continue to be happy, healthy and, why not, productive.
Move your body
These days, we tend to spend quite a lot of time stationary, sitting down and looking at screens not only at work but also during our free time. So staying mindful becomes even more of a challenge because our attention is constantly being disputed by so many things, from notifications on our phones to glossy advertisements everywhere we go.
One way to return to your natural flow and reconnect with your body is to get moving. Whenever you’re feeling a bit off is possibly because you’ve got too many things in your mind so take a break and go for a walk or, if you can’t, do some stretches to reorganise your thoughts before getting back to the task at hand.
Practise acceptance
What a time to be alive! We no longer have to deal with slow dial-up internet connections, waiting at home to receive an important phone call or even having to chop our own food if we don’t want to! Our lives have taken such a massive turn in the past few decades that many of us wonder how we even managed to get so far as a species before the internet existed.
But since there ain’t such a thing as a free lunch, in exchange of the many indisputable benefits that ever-evolving technology has brought us, we’ve been living our lives on the fast lane without a brake pedal in sight. And, as much fun as this lifestyle can be, it’ll eventually take its toll on our health and wellbeing.
We’ve become so accustomed to having everything handed to us on a plate almost immediately that we don’t have time for feeling certain unpopular emotions that are also part of human experience. We get easily frustrated by the slightest delay or problem and can quickly turn into spoiled kids throwing tantrums for something as petty as an internet page not loading, for example. It’s as embarrassing as it’s counterproductive. I get it, I’ve been there too!
We’re stressed and overworked so venting out frustration feels super good and it’s also important but, the question is how often are we indulging in this behaviour? How good is it doing us? It’s useless to fight something that’s already in course with anger and frustration so the best thing is to accept it, breathe deeply and remember that you can’t control most circumstances but you can control how you react to them.
Keep curious
Much like acceptance, when you develop curiosity you stop pushing uncomfortable feelings aside and learn to embrace the full spectrum of emotions. Instead of judging what you’re feeling, you turn the experience into a self-discovery journey and start exploring what the situation is trying to tell you.
What thoughts or things have made me feel this way? How can I behave differently next time? What can I learn from this experience? Think of yourself as an observer and analyse the situation with this perspective in mind, as if you’re detached from what’s happening.
Take a deep breath, take notes to organise what’s going on inside and see where that takes you. Just the mere act of taking this time to get in touch with your own feelings is already a massive step towards putting your foot on the brake and getting into the swing of a more mindful attitude in life.
Try different strategies
There are so many ideas that could help you live a slower, more mindful lifestyle that if I listed them all, you’d be reading this article for days on end. So there’s no one better than you to examine what areas of your life need a bit more attention and come up with your own strategies.
Do you need to take a little bit easier at work to free up some space to be spent with family or friends? What could you do to make that happen? Perhaps delegate some work, block up some time in your calendar or take more breaks? Pay attention to what you tend to complain about the most as this will give you a better indication of what areas are a priority for you.
I hope this post has helped you understand the importance and benefits of living slowly.
Now, I’d love to hear from you: Are you living a slower life already or you think this kind of lifestyle isn’t really for you? Share your comments with us in the box below and take it easy.
Until next time!
x
