The Reflection in the Slow Down

A society that equates busyness with productivity is a society that can become detrimentally distracted.

We’ve all seen the quotes on social media about always hustling and never sleeping, the hundreds of videos swearing by the benefits of waking up at 4 or 5am every morning, giving tips and tricks to become the most successful or productive that you ever have. As we’ve seen this kind of content quite often, especially as the rise of self-help came to compliment it, some of us may have taken the bait.

Some of us may have stopped drinking caffeine in order to be more productive and others may have become more reliant on it, some of us may have started to groggily lay in bed at 4 in the morning as our alarms blared news we didn’t want to hear yet, some of us may have started attempting to save money in the exact way the successful man on YouTube had only to find ourselves confused and not really making that much progress.

I don’t say all of this to say that this kind of content can’t be helpful. I say all of this to place emphasis on the fact that productivity to most of us born in America has always meant stress, being constantly working or busy, anxiety, and even depression for those who feel like they’re consistently working without seeing proper results.

A society that equates busyness with productivity is a society that can become detrimentally distracted.

Though many people are reluctant to admit it for themselves or hear the testimonials of others, this year has brought about a significant slow down that none of us may have asked for, but we discovered many of us needed. It’s a tough thing to put into words and explain to others that something catastrophic and chaotic in nature, especially when cities began to proclaim their closures for thirty days or more, was something that actually turned out to be beneficial to them. How do you say, without sounding self-absorbed or out of touch, that the shut down of your city actually allowed you to rest, even as it seemed like the world around you was in shambles?

It may be a weird thing to roll off the tongue for some, and even a stranger thing for some to hear, but it seems to be the truth for many people around the world. In the shutdown, many realized how much energy they’d been putting into working, into unnecessary projects, into connections, into things in their lives that weren’t serving them the way busyness may have convinced them they did. They began to notice the jagged puzzle pieces that weren’t exactly fitting right in the big picture of what they wanted, and this allowed them the space to sit in their own energy, discover what they truly desired, and remove the pieces that no longer fit.

Though it wasn’t what anyone wanted, it allowed many people the quiet they didn’t even know they desired. It allowed many people the opportunity to rediscover hobbies that were suppressed underneath piles of paperwork, bills, relationships, and financial tips. It allowed many people to connect to the loved ones in their lives in a way they hadn’t in a while. In the shutdown, it’s likely that some people called their parents or an old friend and actually had a conversation with them for the first time in months, rather than exchanging a quick text or a like on Instagram.

People were given the space to just be without obligation, without running in circles, without distraction. This allowed many to learn things about themselves, about others, and even life in the new quiet moments not filled with noise and the urge to be productive.

Then there were some who the quiet became loud for.

There were no more parties, no more events, no more meetings, no more evenings spent laughing and relaxing with a friend. It was just them, in their own space, in their own solitude, and they couldn’t stand it. They realized how much they needed social interaction to feel connected, to feel seen and heard, to feel good, to feel charged. Constantly spending time alone caused them to feel isolated, kind of like a draining battery, and they were just eager for things to return to normal so they could be on the go again.

This could simply be seen as the reaction of an extrovert. But if we were to dive deeper into that need for interaction, would we discover that there’s a reason why this individual is uncomfortable in their own silence?

Though we may not want to readily admit it, many of this needed this time to slow down. It presented us with the space to not rush by the mirror on the way out, but to really look into it and look at ourselves. Constant busyness makes it so easy for us to neglect to check in with ourselves, to ask ourselves how we’re really doing and feeling, to ask if the relationship is actually beneficial for us, to wonder if the job is what we actually want to be doing or if it’s just an easy and secure way for us to pay bills.

We become so busy, so caught up in the noise of everything that exists outside of us that our inner voice becomes suppressed under the desire to work, to make money, to relax. At times, even our idea of relaxation isn’t actually relaxing to us, it’s just another distraction. Those few drinks we can’t wait to have after work, do they help us unwind or do they help us to temporarily calm the stress from the day, only for that same stress to return on Monday?

Acknowledgement of our inner voice isn’t easy when it’s been buried for so long, but there’s never a wrong or late time to begin. Acknowledging that the life we’d been living up until this point may not be a life we actually enjoy isn’t easy. Acknowledging that the relationship may be inevitably burning out isn’t easy. But when you allow yourself the space to just be, to ask yourself what you truly desire, you can begin to take actions in your life that are a reflection of that inner voice, and help you to create the life that’s in your best interest.

Slowing down doesn’t have to be an hour of meditation each morning, but if that’s what you like to do then go for it. Slowing down could be as simple as asking yourself in the morning what you’d like your day to feel like, what you’d like to focus on. It could be as simple as a few deep breaths before you sleep, journaling at night to reflect upon the day, or consciously thinking as you do other tasks. Consciously thinking isn’t zoning out or worrying, but being fully present in whatever task you’re doing.

Be fully present while you’re cooking, be aware of the smells, the sounds. Be fully present while you’re showering, of the temperature, of the feeling of the water hitting your skin. Be fully present while watching a movie or show, put your phone down and really absorb everything you’re watching.

Slowing down doesn’t have to look like the stigma we’ve come to learn, the photo of someone meditating in an open field. It can be as simple or as complex as you want it to be.

The one who knows how to slow down in a society that equates busyness with productivity, is an individual who may become more productive because they learn to become conscious in each moment of their day rather than cruising on auto-pilot until it’s time to lay down and begin again the next day.