Rushing.
“We're a species that rushes through everything, then complains that time flies.”
― Steve Maraboli
Episode 33. SHIFT: 1 of 5 in Series: Escape through Rushing
SHIFT: 5-Part Series- Escape through the Illusion of Control.
Exploring our tendencies to escape life through an illusion of control....
We feel a sense of control through rushing, enduring, obsessing, judging, distracting...
When we are controlling our experience, we are not fully experiencing our life.
1. Escape through Rushing
2. Escape through Enduring
3. Escape through Obsessing
4. Escape through Judging
5. Escape through Distracting
Thank you for joining me through the journey. I am grateful.
Rushing.
We rush through life.
We have this impelling force to move faster, to fit more in, to get more done, to produce more, to be more.
We are even rewarded for this concept of rushing; given a badge for proclaiming, “so much to do”, “so busy”, “can’t slow down”…
How did we get to this place of incessant rush, productivity hacks, and speed at all costs? Perhaps there is a deep need we are fulfilling by taking on more than is even physically or mentally possible…joining the town committee (“they need me”), tackling a new project (“it has to get done”), answering emails during dinner (“they can’t wait”), darting here and there to do all the errands (“we need new curtains in the bathroom and dog food and to upgrade the snow shovel”)….
Does it subconsciously and subtly say, “I am important”, “I have a lot on my plate”, “I am meaningful”?
Or perhaps we are just habituated to rush and move quickly. Maybe we feel stillness is a “waste of time”.
This had been my go-to mind-frame for years upon years (a lifetime!)… Standing in line, waiting for an appointment, slow walkers! Deemed time-wasting and unproductive, impatience would simmer- “I could be getting ‘stuff’ done”. This impatience led to frustration; frustration led to intolerance- not a good place to be - rushing is not joyous, not present, not seeing gratitude for the little "in-between" moments. My sense of rushing was born out of trying to jam 15 minutes of stuff into 12 minutes of time. Time does not bargain; time does not extend; 12 minutes is 720 seconds- and so it goes…I would be in hyper-drive to make up that 3 minutes in getting to the next task; and the rush would, in a sense, give me a rush… a surge of adrenaline…a hit of 'speed', as I sped to the next box to check-off as complete. Being on the other side, I see that slowing to notice, allowing for stillness, embracing the wait-time, actually generates kindness, compassion, gratitude, and reflection.
No doubt we have all rushed through something, or to something, or out of something... we even rush through things that are pleasant and delightful- a delicious meal- not slowing to savor; our spouse’s story- not slowing to hear; a visit with family- not slowing to see; a sunrise- not slowing to appreciate the majesty. But where are we going? And how critical is it to get there with immediacy and urgency?
And in all of this rushing, how many times have you thought, “if I just had more hours in the day…” or “…there’s not enough time”?
I sent out a survey and one question asked, “Do you wish you had more ____”?
The choices were: -energy, -time, -mental resilience, -discipline, -money, -intimacy, -work, -sleep… and the overwhelming response was “time”.
But maybe it’s not more time that we need, but more attention. Maybe if we stop to wonder, as we tear through our life, rush through the minutes, hours, days… where are we going; what is the finish line?
Maybe as we speed through life, without noticing the world, we come to realize that some day, time will actually run out. Then, we may actually say, “I have no time to rush.”
I have no time to rush.
As we come to a place of valuing the attention over valuing the rush, maybe we begin to quiet, and we notice. Maybe we walk slower, and we see more. Maybe we pause to hear, and we connect more. Maybe we notice our surroundings with awe, and we appreciate more. Maybe we take deeper breaths, and we open more. Maybe we embrace that we have no time to rush.
Here's to joy in slowing down,
Jess
“While you'll feel compelled to charge forward, it's often a gentle step back that will reveal to you where you are and what you truly seek.”
― Rasheed Ogunlaru
“Peace never hurries. To rush or force is contradictory to the very essence of peace.”
― Alaric Hutchinson“
Do it all with Love. Nothing is promised. But everything is workable.
To get these weekly episodes of THE SHIFT in your inbox, free…. sign up here THE SHIFT NEWSLETTER
