Slow Your Roll

If you are feeling overwhelmed by the fast pace of daily life, begin to harvest pauses

Viktor Frankl told us to take a very important pause between stimulus and response. In that pause, he reminded us, is the power to choose our response. Can you imagine what it might have been like to have his lived experience, where each day was filled with so much uncertainty and a very real awareness that it could also be his last day on earth. Why would anyone want to slow down and pause when there was so much chaos and pressure?

It dawned on me this morning that Frankl may have been operating on a very organic human thought process - “if this is the end, I want to slow things down and drink it all in.”

I am reading a thin, dense book - Contemplation by Richard Rudd. It has just 101 pages and feels light in my hands. Yet the weight of his economy of words and the depth of their invitation feel like a solid gold bar.

Richard is pulling on the thread that neuroscience has recently offered to us: When we can calm our nervous system with a few deep breaths, we can more easily shift a psychological lever that engages our parasympathetic nervous system (the tend and befriend one) simultaneously with our brain’s executive function (where we can think clearly and problem solve creatively).

The pause is the catalyst for engaging our agency; our em-powerment.

The pause is where we turn down the volume and clear the fog. We can both see and think with greater clarity.

For some reason, a song bubbled up into my consciousness as I read about the remarkable benefits of slowing down when life is moving too fast, simply by pausing. It was Feeling Groovy - The 59th Street Bridge Song by Simon & Garfunkel:

_{Slow down, you move too fast
You got to make the morning last
Just kicking down the cobblestones
Looking for fun and feeling groovy
Ba da-da da-da da-da, feeling groovy}

_{Hello lamppost, what’cha knowing
I’ve come to watch your flowers growin’
Ain’t you got no rhymes for me?
Doo-ait-n-doo-doo, feeling groovy
Ba da-da da-da da-da, feeling groovy}

_{I got no deeds to do, no promises to keep
I’m dappled and drowsy and ready to sleep
Let the morningtime drop all its petals on me
Life, I love you, all is groovy}

Evidently, Simon & Garfunkel caught on quite early (1966 to be exact) that slowing down actually gives us more time, space and appreciation for life.

This is the very lesson that Richard Rudd imparts to us. If we want to feel as though we have greater abundance in each day, we need to learn to not only take a meaningful pause - we should begin to harvest pauses.

Richard’s book Contemplation is thin by design. It symbolizes the most important message he wants to convey: Pure simplicity is the key to unlocking our treasure trove of the good things in life.

We are simply moving too fast to appreciate what is unfolding for us each and every day. Richard playfully invites us to slow our roll.

We’ve been acculturated to buzz about, to hustle and bustle and keeping moving at all costs. The problem with moving so fast is that we forget to stop and smell the roses; we may not even notice the vibrant, fragrant roses.

Take a few minutes to pause and think about how you feel in your body when you are rushing all around, scrambling to gather up backpacks, water bottles and phone chargers as you head out for the day. You get yourself all worked up. Your heart is racing, your brain feels foggy, your hands are clumsy. You spend 10 minutes in a state of utter chaos. As you climb into the driver’s seat of your car, you probably let out a big sigh. That is your amazing body doing its best to get your attention and reset you. Unconsciously your brain knows that you operating a car in a state of frenzy has a high risk factor.

Richard Rudd invites us to begin to live our lives at a slower pace. He also wants us to prepare to be amazed at how much better we feel in our bodies and how much more satisfied and appreciative we become with a normal, daily life. Slowing down and pausing shifts us into greater awareness. We begin to enjoy the process, reap the rewards and rest on our laurels.

Not only are we gathering pauses throughout the day, we feel good. That pause calms our nervous system so we are more relaxed, open-hearted and open-minded. A clear head helps us notice more, become more resourceful and move with agility.

To get a real taste of this very visceral experience, imagine that same 10 minutes of your usual morning anxiety in trying to get out the door on time, done at a much slower speed. Slow down and be much more engaged with each small task. Feel the weight of the water in your refillable flask. Smile as you twist the lid on it and place it in your canvas bag. Gather your phone, charger and sunglasses and place them in the bag too. Mentally, your happy brain is checking things off — you are in the green! Take a moment to appreciate a sweeping glance around your home — you will feel a sense of pride and gratitude. Tuck that in your heart. Notice how you are feeling in your body as you walk with confidence to the front door. You feel in control, settled and ready to take on the day. Chances are you will not sigh deeply when you sit in the driver’s seat. You will have a calm sense of being in control.

What may surprise you most about the contrast in your normal rush mode and this one of slowing things down, is that the 10 minutes feels more like 20. You simply feel that you not only had enough time, you have more than enough time.

If you were to set a timer, you might make the delightful discovery that slowing things down is actually much more time efficient.

Seems that old adage, haste makes waste, has stood the test of time.

If you want to feel like you have more than enough time in each day, take Richard Rudd’s advice to heart. Take that pause, not only between stimulus and response, but take a pause often throughout your day. Slowing down brings you clarity, confidence and enhanced awareness.

When you take a pause, take a deep breath. You expand your lung capacity and lower your heart rate. In a calm, relaxed state of mind and body, you will reduce mistakes and over-reactions that cause negative chain reactions. You will have more time on your hands — use those hands as your metaphor for harvesting more meaningful pauses throughout your busy day.

Yes, you have a lot to do AND you can calmly get them done. Enjoy the process, reap the rewards and rest on your laurels.