Slowing Down The Pace Of Life.

[Hardik jain]

I know living life at a slow pace and performing actions mindfully is very healthy. But no matter how much I try I still am struggling at slowing down the pace of my life. I'm eating fast, driving fast, doing work fast... Basically I'm hurrying out of habit. How do I slow down?

 

[jjer94]

You're "trying" to slow down your life instead of removing the things in your life that cause it to be fast-paced.

You already know the things you need to give up in order to slow down. You just don't want to deal with the emotional labor of coming off the addictions. Sorry, but the only way out, is through.

A meditation habit is a great method for weaning off addictions and slowing down the pace of your life. If you've never done it before, Leo has some great videos that will teach you.

Cheers!

[Hardik jain]

@jjer94 I've been meditating consistently from 1 year for 30 minutes.

[Blind Observer]

jjer94 is right remove all distractions, you can write a list of all the things you have and you do, then reduce them to the minimum and remove them from the list. 

[Hardik jain]

@Blind Observer @jjer94 - can you give me an example of the things that are distracting me from living a slow paced life?

[Anna]

3 hours ago, Hardik jain said:

I'm eating fast, driving fast, doing work fast... Basically I'm hurrying out of habit.

I had the same problem for years. It basically has it's roots in my upbringing. My parents taught me to do everything as fast as possible. Any work to do? Do it fast. Eating? "Stop looking at your food for so long!" "Why are you eating so slow?!"

It's hard to break through your habits, but it's possible.

You are eating fast? Sit down, take your time, shut your monkey mind down and enjoy your meal.

You are driving fast? Why? What will happen if you are 5 minutes late? Yep, nothing.

You are working fast? Also: Why? You have enough time to do your work. If not, you should probably restructure your schedule.

So what helped me is simple. I often asked myself "Why?" and "What will happen if I'm not fast?". Answer: Nothing.

Slow down, a fast pace lifestyle makes you sick.

[Hardik jain]

@Anna God, you're beautiful & thank you.

[MIARIVEL]

@Hardik jain All of these things seem to be a habit but if you start to incorporate small steps to slow down into your daily routine, you will find you can breathe, relax and do things at a pace that feels right for you. 

My life is pretty much like the way you feel now, I do everything fast because I live such a busy lifestyle and I have so much to do in so little time and constant deadlines to meet. 

I find when I don't force myself to slow down sometimes I reach burnout and I make a lot of costly errors in my business and my work that I do, so these were good enough reasons for me to slow down. 

You don't want to live fast and die young so breathe, slow it down a fraction and relax - you will live longer and healthier. 

[philosogi]

@Hardik jain This might seem like an obvious question, but how is your fast-paced life hurting you? 

[Hardik jain]

17 hours ago, philosogi said:

@Hardik jain This might seem like an obvious question, but how is your fast-paced life hurting you? 

Fast paced life ain't letting me be calm and isn't letting me enjoy my stuff.

[philosogi]

5 hours ago, Hardik jain said:

Fast paced life ain't letting me be calm and isn't letting me enjoy my stuff.

I don't think anyone has brought this up yet. Practicing awareness, which I think of basically as: at every continuous moment, having consciousness of body, mind, and interactions with the 'outer world' AKA full consciousness, by definition does not allow you to rush. There's too much to be aware of! So if you haven't already seen Leo's linked video above, I think that's a good starting point.

Also, you can investigate why you have such a rushed life. Do you subconsciously give yourself negative self-talk when you're not rushing? Some subconscious self-talk could be "I should be doing something right now," "If I'm not doing everything I can right now, I won't be able to handle a crisis if it comes up," "I'm so lazy." Start asking yourself "why" and keep digging. Don't accept the ego's answers to your questions, which will be uncomfortable, but ultimately you will become stronger and more self-actualized as a result. 

EDIT: I'm assuming you don't literally mean "stuff"

Edited August 22, 2016 by philosogi
To state assumption I forgot

[Lawrence]

On 8/14/2016 at 6:06 AM, jjer94 said:

You're "trying" to slow down your life instead of removing the things in your life that cause it to be fast-paced.

You already know the things you need to give up in order to slow down. You just don't want to deal with the emotional labor of coming off the addictions. Sorry, but the only way out, is through.

A meditation habit is a great method for weaning off addictions and slowing down the pace of your life. If you've never done it before, Leo has some great videos that will teach you.

Cheers!

Awesome response! =)

[Lawrence]

On 8/14/2016 at 7:24 AM, Hardik jain said:

@jjer94 I've been meditating consistently from 1 year for 30 minutes.

Great! Stick to it =)