We live in a culture of hurry. It can seem like we chronically have more tasks on our plates than we can manage, more thoughts spinning in our minds than we can sort through.
We move fast, and still we fall farther behind. We’re more hurried, and become more harried. Lately I’ve been noticing the many ways that this speed trap shows itself.
It’s in the ever-pervasive eyes-on-phone phenomenon: while chilling out, while watching TV, while shopping for groceries.
It’s in the trying to get four things done when there’s only time for three.
It’s in the tired and worried eyes we pass in the workplace.
It’s at stop signs where cars barely slow down.
It’s at mealtimes where food is consumed rather than tasted.
We’re all casualties of a racing, hyperactive society. There is a current of anxiety in the air that pushes us to move faster and do more. And it leaves us tired and unfulfilled.
There’s a beautiful set of principles from Tai Chi that I use a lot in my classes (from the Tai Chi teacher, Colin Snow). I frequently observe that one of the lines dazzles me and others with its simple invitation:
To create space for yourself, move below the speed of habit.
Living fast is a habit response. It’s driven by fear and anxiety. It may get us where we’re going more quickly, but it surely detours us from a life we love.
The key is creating internal space, by shifting our awareness inward. This doesn’t require that we sit on a cushion for two hours a day, or that we walk and work at a slow pace. It’s often as easy and close as an intentional breath, and a tuning in to our thoughts, feelings, and body sensations.
We call this space Presence: it’s an intentional, relaxed, alert state of being, waiting for us just beneath our speed of habit.
Our being and our doing can be sweetened by this Presence. And the paradox is that it’s a very efficient and effective state of being, because it’s connected to our higher knowing and it’s sourced from our Higher Power.
The next time you find yourself in a state of hurry, I invite you to take a breath and downshift into the Presence that rides just below your speed of habit.
It may be the most life-changing move you make.
I promise you’ll be surprised by what comes in its wake.