Category Archives: Habits

The power of slow

Slow down
The power of slow

I came across the saying above ‘One slow thing at a time is a powerful way to live’.  That saying has stuck with me for years and I find that it really helps me when I feel I have too much to do and I feel overwhelmed.  I just tell myself OK Tom just do one thing and do it slowly.   No pressure at all.  The sense of being torn between different things fades away and I get into doing one thing.  Also the sense of pressuring myself to do something quickly fades away.  I have given myself permission to do one thing and do it slowly.

Benefits of slow

Slow takes away the pressure my monkey mind is putting me under.  I have to get this, this and this done today.  Saying one slow thing at a time gives me permission to take my time and relax and do one thing and focus on it and enjoy it.  I become more present in the moment.  It is paradoxical because I find that telling myself do one slow thing at a time actually helps me get more done!  Multi-tasking is a myth.  What multi-tasking really means is rapidly switching between tasks.  Multi-tasking is really switch-tasking.  Every time we switch tasks there is a stop/start process that goes on in the brain and this stop starting process is energy sapping.  I feel that this is certainly true in my own case and I prefer to focus on only one task at a time.

Beating procrastination

I also find that telling myself to do one slow thing at a time helps me beat putting things off.  There is no need to procrastinate because I have given myself permission to do one thing slowly.  I think this reduces the energy barrier to starting something new because you have given yourself permission to do it slowly.

In summary

Doing one slow thing at a time is a powerful way to live.  The next time you are feeling overwhelmed or are procrastinating just pick one thing and give yourself permission to do it slowly.  Enjoy the slowness of it and watch yourself get more done.  Let the power of slow work in your life!

Best wishes,

Tom

Process Versus Goals

Back in December 2015 my Life Coach recommended that I set goals.  By the way I do recommend life coaching which is essentially having someone to ask you some great questions to make you think and also hold you accountable as you set out to achieve the goals you set for yourself.

Goals versus processI love setting goals and contemplating the future.  My life coach recommended that I set 5 year, 3 year and 1 year goals which I did.  I set goals for each of the categories shown above.  That is a lot of goal setting!  I later updated these goals in April 2017, nearly one and half years ago now.  The problem is that I have not looked at them since!  The reason that I never looked at them I think is because they were too many and too overwhelming.

Looking at these goals now is strange because my life today is so much different.  Only the one year plan has some resemblance to reality!  Perhaps that is because it is so difficult to see far into the future (even 3-5 years is far!).  The future is unknown and life takes unexpected twists and turns.    For example two of my close family members have passed away unexpectedly since I last updated the plan only one and a half years ago.   Career wise I have also taken an unexpected route and have learned new skills in developing and teaching online courses which I really enjoy and which is proving a successful side venture for me.  That was nowhere to be seen in my plans and just goes to show that we need to keep our antennae up at all times for new and unexpected opportunities.

Process

What I do focus on each morning and also review at the end of each week are my quarterly goals.  I have a maximum of three.  These goals are much more immediate and attainable.  Overall however I find that my success in life is related to how closely I keep to my process.  Your process is your daily set of routines and habits that drive progress in your life on a day to day basis.  This is where the rubber meets the road!  For example one thing that I follow religiously is my morning routine.  I find that as the day progresses it is harder to control what happens as there are more interruptions and also tiredness sets in.

Last quarter 2018

We are now in mid-September and 2018 is heading into the final stretch.   NOW is a great time to set yourself three goals maximum for the last quarter of the year  (October, November, December).  There are three months to make this your best year yet.  What three goals do you want to achieve before the end of the year?  Another question to reflect on now is how can you improve your process (daily habits and routines) which will drive progress towards your three end of year goals?

If you want to expand your knowledge and get great ideas on how to improve your process then check out my course “Experiments in Personal Change” which is packed full of ideas on how to improve your process.  The course also goes into more detail on the pros and cons of goal setting.  Please check out the free course preview.

Best wishes,

Tom