Monday, November 23, 2009

The Power of Slow


Have you ever experienced the power of doing something so slowly that you notice each component and can see the change in the environment and in you as each part gives way to another?

Speed, of course, has its appeal and yet, unless it is an emergency, I'd prefer the days when we took the train and not the plane to New York, when a letter would arrive and a reply would not be expected for days, when lunch was not rushed, and words were to be savored and not tweeted or blasted. I look back now at various times and experiences and wonder about all of the good things I must have shot past.

4 comments:

Anonymous said...

I would have to wholeheartedly agree, Michael! In fact, I wrote an entire book entitled THE POWER OF SLOW: 101 WAYS TO SAVE TIME IN OUR 24/7 WORLD that addresses how to embrace a positive relationship with time so you have more of it.

More at http://PowerofSlow.org.
Best to you!

Michael Wade said...

Christine,

Congratulations on the book!

You have great timing. I meet more and more people who are striving to appreciate the moment.

Rowan Manahan said...

"First technique, then power, then speed." That was the way taught me by the wonderful Ch'ng Ewe Cheng, my first Chinese martial arts instructor. We would practice a new technique very very slowly, breaking down the coordination until our muscles were shaking and we would keep on doing it that way until our brains fully understood the movement. Only then would we start to move a little more quickly. Techniques I learnt 30 years ago and I can still recreate them perfectly, even with my overweight, creaky body ...

You cannot savour anything quickly.

Michael Wade said...

Rowan,

I like those stages. And now I know how you maintain order in your office.