Why are people always in a hurry? Time flies literally.
It is almost June 21, the summer solstice in the Northern Hemisphere. Autumn ends and winter begins in the Southern Hemisphere.
In the 19th century, Harriet Beecher Stowe wrote: “The world is in such a hurry.” That observation was valid during that slow, genteel period when there were no gadgets, cars and planes. It is more relevant in this millennium.
A new movement has challenged the cult of speed — slowness.
Our pace of life has accelerated to a breathless, adrenaline-charged, heart-stopping, backbreaking speed. As a result of the high energy momentum, things are spinning out of control.
Multitasking is a talent and skill that is cultivated and encouraged. It’s a “can do” superhuman attitude — the ability to think, juggle and accomplish multiple things on different levels at the same time.
The high-powered alpha male can speak on the mobile phone, dictate a memo, write notes on his iPad, sip coffee, nibble a sandwich and attend two separate lunch meetings — all within the span of 30 minutes. He can give a speech and shake hands with many associates in another room. It is a gift and a talent.
The speed is dizzying, relentless.
Wonder woman does multiple roles with elan, grace and balance. Multi-faceted, she is a careerwoman, a professional, entrepreneur, wife, mother, hostess, driver, tutor, gardener, housekeeper, nanny, homemaker, chef and civic volunteer. The nonstop whirlwind is probably a mobile phone addict and computer whiz as well.
No wonder, stress levels are at a record high. People are collapsing from various disorders — the interrelated symptoms of hypertension, fatigue, exhaustion and anxiety.
The symptoms are hypertension, hyperactivity, palpitation, cramps, hyperacidity allergies, shortness of breath, angina, fever and insomnia.
People hardly have time to inhale and exhale. They rush around until they are blue or red in the face from lack of oxygen.
In Praise of Slowness, a book by Carl Honoré, is about challenging the “Cult of Speed.” The author, a foreign correspondent, had experienced an epiphany of “I am Scrooge with a stopwatch, obsessed with saving every scrap bedtime” on his flight back to London. He chatted with an editor on the mobile phone while he was skimming a new article, “One Minute Bedtime Story.” Eureka!
The father of a toddler exclaimed, “Have I gone completely insane?”
He took time off to do important research on the new ace of life. It explores and explains a new life on a slow lane.
“I am Scrooge with a stopwatch, obsessed with saving every scrap of time, a minute here, a few seconds there. Everyone around me… is caught in the vortex. “
The workplace is considered a critical battlefront. The author said a big corporate country has a pathological fear of slowness.
It is possible to decelerate, and business could gain so much from a sense of work-life balance. The payoff would be in productivity and good staff retention. When the staff is more relaxed, they have more time to think more creatively.
Mr. Honoré said his whole approach to life as a freelance journalist was busy. However, he has changed his whole approach and attitude — one that cuts back activities that are eating more time than they are worth. It eases the pressure.
The family spends one day of the week doing nothing, just hanging out at home. The kids would be more relaxed and attentive. The family would be calmer.
At work, it helps to space deadlines and resist the temptation to take on too many assignments, no matter how irresistible.
Multitasking has its place, but it also has its limits.
To illustrate, some people converse while surfing the net. This happens at family dinners. How can you get anything interesting out of the conversation if you are distracted? It is antisocial behavior.
Switch your mobile phone to silent mode when you are not expecting an urgent call (Medical doctors and hospital staff and humanitarian aid workers are exempt).
Leave the work desk and sit in a quiet space for a few moments in a day. Just relax. Turn off the TV and read a book. Listen to music. Daydream. Watch the clouds and look for animal shapes in the sky.
Unplugging helps one de-stress. On a pleasure trip, resist the urge to stay glued on the mobile phone, laptop and internet. Time to switch off.
Stop to smell the flowers. Listen to the rocks grow. This is the Zen attitude.
American physician Larry Dossey coined the term “time sickness.” It is a neurotic belief that time is always running away from us. We feel the compulsion to keep up, faster and faster.
The Western attitude “time is money” has permeated our consciousness. People think that the best way to get value for money is to go faster. The idea is absurd — putting quantity over quality.
Our work, diet, health and relationships suffer.
“The best way to get value for our time is to give things the time they deserve. We need moments of inactivity, of boredom even, to relax, reflect and recharge,” he emphasized.
We should not shortchange ourselves. We are rushing through our life rather than living it.
We should have the time and tranquility to connect with our inner selves and with the people and things that matter most.
There is a profound need for slowness and self-nourishment.
Maria Victoria Rufino is an artist, writer and businesswoman. She is president and executive producer of Maverick Productions.
