Today, life is about speed. Doing something faster is better than doing it slowly. Because of course it is. Because that means that you’ll have more time for other things. And you’ll have more time to work on doing those other things faster. So you can fit more things into your life. Because of course you want more things in your life.
That is something that I struggle with too. But more than cramming more stuff into my life, I want to fill my life with important things. And the first, and most critical place to start, is my mind. More specifically, it’s with my thoughts.
What does it mean to think slowly?
We have learned that thinking quickly means being more intelligent. And that is true. But, it also largely misses the point. How long did it take JK Rowling to write the first Harry Potter book? Do you know? Do you particularly care? No, because the quality of the work is far more important than how long it took to create. We’ve switched our focus to speed at the expense of quality. And I would like to switch it back.
If you wanted to entertain yourself by watching tv, you wouldn’t try to consume as many shows as possible. You also wouldn’t watch them on fast forward. Because the goal is no to watch a lot of shows. The goal is to entertain yourself. Even if watching more shows would help you to do that, the way in which you view them matters, as well as which ones you watch. Understand the goal behind each action, and make sure that that action serves its purpose.
But what is the goal of a thought?
That is for you to determine. Whatever goals drive your actions, should also drive your thoughts. Any deeper meaning behind your actions should exist behind your thoughts. That said, I find thoughts to be more about self discovery and analysis than actions.
And how does one think more slowly?
Thinking more slowly is about giving your thoughts room to breathe. Let them stay in your mind for a few moments, instead of just one. Explore their edges. What do they have to say about who you are? Where your actions will take you? Is that a place that you’d like to go? Delve into their depths. How would you change if you pursued this idea with the entirety of your focus? How would this affect the people around you?
How does this thought affect you? Does it tend to arouse certain emotions? Or drive you to take certain actions? Notice how these things, without reacting to them.
What about you?
Lately I’ve been caught up with video games. I’ve been racing along to get or achieve things, and I lost sight of why I was playing in the first place. But what about you? Have you been rushing your thoughts along without considering them?