As I was reading some articles about the international news, I could not help but think how fast everything is going. Not just right now, and the feeling does not translate into “wow, I cannot keep up with all this” either. Without falling into any kind of rat race (never been a big fan of pointless pursuits), I tried to disconnect, for a bit. Then, almost logically (for 2013 anyway), that did not last very long… I kept reading on other topics, mostly online (so much for unplugging), and stumbled upon another suggestion: the wired option can stay, the frequency, however, deserves some attention.
Newsflash? Not really. I spend too much time online: yes, I knew that, thank you. That is mostly where I feed my news-curious habits… It punctuates my day with culture, politics, arts and society updates from anywhere and everywhere. And I like it, a lot. Then I got to read that little piece, found through a place which suggests tactful insights on a smoother journey: “In acting, there is a saying that if you have a scene that is not working because it is too slow, slow it down even more. Likewise, if your day is feeling like it is stalling and there are roadblocks everywhere slowing you down, slow yourself down first. Take a moment, take a breath, calm yourself, and find out what needs to happen first before you can proceed. Your mind knows even when your brain does not. Honest. Maybe you just need to centre. Maybe meditate. Maybe you are heading in the wrong direction. Maybe you are just thirsty. Do not focus on “why is not anything working”, focus on “what feels right to do next?”. As Shakespeare and good old Emperor Augustus meant: “More haste, less speed”, otherwise known as “slow is smooth, smooth is fast”. So if nothing is working and everything is too slow… Slow it down even more.”
Really? Sure, challenge accepted. There I was, slowing down, filtering daily events down to what helps moving forward and leaving the claustrophobia-induced perceptions aside. For a logistics and planning addict like me, it is… not cool, at first. Then I was on a roll: flirting with Mother Nature (I know, it sounds super cliché and… it is true), riding my bike (and making eye contact with this driver who pretended he had not seen me: really…), going for a walk, and reconnecting with Friends, out of the blue. That last piece is the big one for me. Doing business is about relationships and interactions. I am lucky to have an enormous source of oxygen with them through our conversations: this is my constant thirst, and I am not letting that go. Oxygen is too precious!
Photo credit © OFL – “Shirley reflection”