Linger…
smile awhile,
rest awhile,
laugh awhile,
read awhile,
let your racing heart
slowly walk awhile.
– Melinda Yeoh
In today’s faster, better, stronger society, there is little appreciation for slow living.
Gone are the days of lingering over coffee, having nowhere to go, and nothing to do. We are hurrying through life and missing out on what makes life worth living.
It is my mission to bring the idea of slow back into my life. The way it was when we were kids and could just sit and watch the caterpillar journey across the sidewalk. When we could spend an entire Saturday afternoon building a Lego city or performing a puppet show for our grandparents.
You can read more about the slow movement here.
I want to go back in time – to a time when we actually had more control over our lives.
Would you like to join me?
Learning the Art of Slow Living
When I decided to focus my life on how I can live more slowly, I gathered as much information on the topic as I could. From all the research I did, I created a 4 week slow living challenge where I could take you and me through a different slow living principle each week. As I write this, I am implementing each change and challenge into my life right along with you. You can read more about my call to slow down here.
During the first week of the challenge, we will learn to begin to shift our mindset. Through a series of journal prompts and activities we will practice prioritizing living rather than checking things off our infinitely growing to-do list.
For the second week of the challenge, we focus on food and how we can use this essential part of living to help train us to slow down.
Next, during the third week, we take a look at our home and closets and learn how we can change our mindset out of “more, more, more” and happily accept the idea of enough.
Lastly, the fourth week concludes our challenge by reflecting on the previous activities and appreciating how we might go forward.
Ready to start?
Slow Living Challenge
Week One – Shifting into a Slow Mindset
Below you will find a graphic for each day. Clicking on the graphic will jump you to the section of the page with the instructions or inspiration for each activity.
P.S. Make adjustments to the prompts as you see fit. Have fun with it. This is all about how you are able to fit slow living into your life. The only rule is that you try to enjoy the moment!
Day One – Investing in a Journal Practice
By investing in a journal practice I do not necessarily mean investing money but rather time (although, if funds allow it there are some beautiful journals out there to buy). For very little cost in time, you can develop a journaling habit that is well worth the investment.
Choosing the type of journal practice you want is a personal decision. I like hardcover lined notebooks and gel pens but you might prefer a digital journal app or a voice recorder. It doesn’t matter so much how you journal just that you are taking the time to connect with your inner self.
Your challenge is to take 10 minutes a day this month to begin the practice of showing up to journal. It doesn’t matter what you journal about only that you show up. I cannot tell you how many times I had no idea what to journal about so simply started with an account of my day and before you knew it I was four pages into a deep, emotional filled rant of some kind.
Stuck on how to start? Consider this:
Reflect on your past week. Was there a point in the week that you felt overwhelmed by your to-do list? Did you feel there was too little time in the day? Did you neglect your health for the sake of finishing your tasks (forget to eat, drink water, lose sleep)? How did that make your body feel? How did you react emotionally? Did anyone else get caught in the cross-fire of your overwhelm?
Interested in going further? Check out some inspiration on my Pinterest board.
Day Two – Observing your Current Pace
As you go about your day, I want you to view it from a slow living perspective. What routines feel hurried? What tasks pull you out of your wellbeing? Are you trying to do too many things at once and therefore unable to be present for any of them? When you are doing things such as driving to work, how do you feel? Are you anxious because you might be late? Frustrated by other drivers? Do you try to avoid downtime out of fear of being seen as unproductive? Are you rushing through meals? Feel forced to buy take-out due to time restraints?
Return to your journal and think about the things you observed from your slow living perspective. Does this feel like the life you want to be living? If you look hard, are there ways to eliminate some of your stresses? Consider things like waking up 15 minutes early so you can appreciate your drive to work from a calm mindset or cooking twice the amount of food for dinner one night so you can have leftovers the next night. Where can you invest a bit of extra time to create calm in your day.
Day Three – Cultivating an Attitude for Gratitude
Now that we are starting the practice of noticing, I want you to begin to notice the little things in life we tend to overlook. Notice how the warm coffee mug feels in your hands in the morning. When you step outside, try to pay attention to your senses – what do you smell, see, hear, feel. Notice how your loved ones nose crinkles when they smile or how the shirt they are wearing makes their eyes sparkle. Appreciate where you are and what you have.
When you return to your journal time list five things you are grateful for. They can be big things, like the house you live in, or they can be small, like the smell of the lilacs from your neighbors yard that greets you as soon as you step outside you door. Perhaps to anyone else they would be insignificant or perhaps you feel its obvious. Just take a moment to appreciate what is special to you.
Day Four – Making Time for Tea
We are at the half way point of the week and well on our way to considering a slower mindset. Today, take some time out of your day to make a cup of tea or coffee or another favorite beverage and just enjoy it. Don’t watch TV, don’t work on your computer or scroll your phone. Just appreciate the taste, smell and feel of your beverage. Consider the mug, the atmosphere around you, your thoughts. Take these few minutes to be full present in your tea time.
Reflect during your journal practice how you are feeling as we learn to live slow.
Day Five – Learning to be Present
Today, during your downtime, the time you are “relaxing”, I want you to be present for it. Linger over dinner, appreciate how the dish soap smells as you wash your dish, be intentional about what you watch on TV or however you spend your evening. Don’t multi-task while you are meant to be relaxing. Allow yourself to be in the present. Try not to let your mind wander to your to-do-list and resist the urge to feel guilt over not being “productive”.
While you journal, reflect on how it feel to be in the moment. Does it feel foreign to you? Do you have to consciously choose the present? How often do you catch yourself feeling guilt for resting? What keeps you from really relaxing?
Day Six – Make Time for a Hobby
Society today does not value hobbies. If you enjoy something, you ought to be making money at it (aka the side hustle). The idea of taking time to do something that is not contributing to your financial health or your physical health is seen as unproductive. Think about what you used to enjoy doing when you “had time to waste”. Perhaps, like me, you were never to far from your paintbrushes or sketchbook, or maybe you used to enjoy spending your days out in nature. Plan to get back to doing something you love just for the fun of it.
When you reflect today, think about how you spend your time. Where can you carve out time to do your hobbies? I am sure most of us would benefit for replacing some of our screen time with something that nurtures our soul.
Day Seven – Reconnect
It is the last day of the first week of the challenge. Today, I want you to reach out to someone and have an unhurried conversation. You can do this over the phone or in person. Reconnect with someone who you have been meaning to call but “life just got in the way”.
Don’t forget to spend a few minutes journaling today. Reflect on the past week and consider any permanent changes you want to make in your effort to slow down.
Read More
Jump to the other weeks of the challenge:
