Slow is Smooth, Smooth is Fast
Relax, One Foot In Front of the Other
During quarantine especially, I’ll feel like a day has gone by and I’ve accomplished nothing.
Then I look back at all the things I’ve checked off and realized that I actually did okay.
The problem isn’t what I did, but how I feel about what I did.
Trying to get things done, trying to make the most of my time, feeling like I’m wasting my life if I’m not constantly working.
Even when I succeed in what I set out to do, the end result of this thinking is that I’ll always be chasing the horizon. I’ll never actually win.
Whenever this happens, I try to remember a common Navy SEALs mantra…
Slow is Smooth, Smooth is Fast
I would rather be in flow than disjointed.
I would rather feel like I’m gliding than going through levels of exhaustion and excitement.
Going full out is great…in spurts. But it isn’t sustainable long term.
Perhaps most importantly, I would rather enjoy the journey as I put in the work.
One of the best examples of this is from Derek Sivers, founder of CD Baby and one of my favorite entrepreneurial minds:
“When I notice that I’m all stressed out about something or driving myself to exhaustion, I remember that bike ride and try dialing back my effort by 50 percent. It’s been amazing how often everything gets done just as well and just as fast, with what feels like half the effort. Which then makes me realize that half of my effort wasn’t effort at all, but just unnecessary stress that made me feel like I was doing my best.” — Derek Sivers
Conclusion
If you’re feeling any guilt during this quarantine that you’re not getting anything done, go back and check to see if that’s actually true.
You’ve probably done a lot more than you think. So going forward, go slow, absorb the day and your work, and smoothly go from one project to the next.
Then slowly go to bed in the satisfaction that you did your work. When you wake up, slide into the day as before.
In the case that you feel paralyzed out of choice or overwhelm or you just don’t know what to do next, take some time to do nothing. Then slowly get up and start working on anything.
I know this time is weird. But don’t worry, I’m right there with ya:)
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This article is Day 25 of the 30-Day Fishbowl Series
You can start the series by clicking HERE.
