I’ve often heard the saying, “go slow to go fast”, in cyclocross racing. Too many sudden moves on the course can mean making a mistake that costs the person time. They might have a crash, a mechanical issue, or their foot simply falls off the pedal. All in all, seconds count – the competitor who can control their power, handle their bike, and smoothly recover is usually the one who wins.
I’ve been thinking about this a bunch lately, and how we intentionally build practices into our day to slow ourselves down, so that we can maintain reasonable speed.
Think about it: max effort on something is only sustainable for so long before something gives (usually us). Quality, performance, it all suffers if we’re running hot for too long.
How do you like to slow down during the day or week? Naps? Planned time to eat / snack? Quiet time to read or think in the morning?
Purposely slowing down, even for just a morning or afternoon can help your brain and your body recover from intense working sessions – activating the Parasympathetic Nervous or “rest and digest” System. It allows us to calm down, counterbalance, relax, and repair. After an intense physical workout, what do we typically do? We rest. But for some reason, after intense mental focus, we might continue on, trying to power through it physically. Eventually, it’ll catch up with us, and our body will force us to stop, by design.
Here are a few things I’ve found interesting lately, and you might too:
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“Festina lente” is a Latin translation of a Classical Greek saying, meaning “make haste slowly”. The first Roman emperor Augustus was known for using this saying, because he didn’t want his military commanders to be hasty. (5 min read)
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“Flow” or as Cal Newport describes it, “Deep Work” is about minimizing distractions through intentional focus. Important work requires us to slow down. This Hidden Brain podcast episode (NPR) talks about how to cultivate deep attention and the benefits from it. (33 min podcast)
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Before finding “flow” though (ha!), I think what Brené talks about in this episode of Unlocking Us, on “settling the ball”, like soccer players do, is a pro move. I love this focus. Settle. The. Ball. (25 min podcast)
Wishing you all a few moments/minutes/hours of “slow” today.
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