You CAN slow down.

You can slow down.

When I worked in an outpatient hospital every so often we had to get feedback for how we were doing.  One of my first evaluations said that I had a good work ethic but I was a bit frantic. I took that feedback in and really began noticing my behavior and the behavior of others.

I looked around me and could see that many of my coworkers were not in a hurry at all and they seemed to get all their work done. I was still pretty new at the time but I was running around like a chicken with my head cut off trying to make sure I was completing all of the small tasks that needed to be finished. 

Noticing the pace at which my coworkers got their work done and how I was going about it made me think, “If they are getting their work done and are not in such a hurry, then surely I can do that too.” It made me think of a situation where a car might speed past you but you both end up at the red light. It doesn’t always matter how fast you go, life will stop you no matter what. 

What are you telling yourself?

We also have to be aware of what we are telling ourselves. I know that for a long time I would constantly say to myself “there is never enough time.” And the result of that was that it felt like I never had enough time. But is that true? When I did some reflecting, I usually noticed that things would always get done somehow, even when it feels like there is not enough time. So in reality, there sort of seems like there is enough time.

I used to study energy healing and the biggest take away was the energy moves with intention. For those of you who are not into that sort of thing, intention just means (according to Merriam Webster) determination to act in a certain way. 

I think of it as telling yourself you're going to do something but putting some emotional umf behind it. If I am constantly telling myself, with umf, “I have to go faster” then that will be the case, but if I tell myself “I can slow down.” that will be the case too. 

Another part of this, which may not be something that you have thought about, is that we sometimes get good feelings from being frantic or doing things with great speed. I can recognize that when I was given a new task to do or had a list of things I needed to do I thought, “Oooo, a new task! Let me see how fast I can do this.” I had a surge of good feeling at the thought of getting a job done quickly. 

Even though I was running myself ragged and ignoring signals from my body saying that I needed to slow down, I pushed past them for the sake of the ooo. 

Maybe you are able to see how doing things quickly all the time can take a toll and even be harmful at times, but a lot of times, under the surface there are good feelings too. It feels good to complete tasks.

We have to take into account the good feelings too so that we can begin to do things differently. Because ignoring them will keep you stuck. 

If you recognize that you enjoy the rush of going fast that's ok. Maybe it would be beneficial to make a pros and cons list of how going fast all the time affects you mentally and physically. What would be some benefits of slowing down?

Change what you tell yourself. 

Most of us, not all, but most of us have a dialogue running in our head. That dialogue can direct your behavior. Changing what the dialogue says can change how you behave. It is about setting intention but it can also be seen in cognitive behavior therapy too. 

If I am telling myself I will never have enough time, the word never points to the statement being an absolute. But there are often exceptions to absolute statements making them inaccurate. A more accurate statement is “I usually have enough time.” 

When we begin to change what we tell ourselves, we are looking for statements that seem true. If I went from “I never have enough time” to “I always have enough time,” that may not feel true. But if you say, “I usually have enough time,” or “I can slow down.” Those may seem more true. 

Beginning to make these small changes does not mean you will never rush again or never find yourself frantically trying to get a task done. But you will have an increased awareness and the ability to pause and choose a different way of being. Sometimes, I will recognize that I am moving too fast and I will stop and say, “It’s ok to slow down now.” 

The goal is not to eliminate anything here. We are just wanting to make small changes and create awareness so that you can slowly move toward a more comfortable life.

Conclusion

If you want to slow down, it is possible. We can begin by checking what you are telling ourselves, what sort of dialogue do you have going on? Then we can begin to set different intentions. How can you change what you are telling yourself to a phrase that can be more realistic and comfortable to you. Change takes practice, but in the long run if you can begin to slow down now, your mind and your body will thank you. And the people around you too.