Slow down if life is too fast

Our daily lives are like a marathon. Always in the sprint, mind you. But the goal remains out of sight, how persevering and fast we also run! Time for a pause to reduce the speed for a moment. "Slow down" - eight methods with which you can slow down between work and leisure. We jump and rush through life. Everything faster, better and more efficient. Because we strive for the optimum! We plan, organize, but we never get there. After we have done dozens of things, the next challenge is already waiting for us. In the morning on the way to the train, in a hurry mobile phone messages, e-mails, checking the news of the day, don't spill coffee. Arrived at the office, finely clocked, meticulously planned and productively designed, the day starts. The phone rings, the inbox fills with new messages and the next meeting waits. Even after work it goes on: while shopping we type on our mobile phone, at home we constantly change TV channels, while we have dinner and the mobile device keeps humming.

Always available ... always available. Surely it makes sense to make a daily schedule, get to the office quickly, be productive at work and maintain social contacts. But why actually? Life has become too fast for many people and they are returning to slowness: they paint, knit, bake, cook, ferment, practise yoga, spend holidays in lonely huts in the mountains, monasteries or Ayurvedic resorts ... everything is permitted that we feel like doing and by which we mean getting our simple, slowed life back again. The newer magazines at the kiosk underline the trend of deceleration: from healthy and vital to spiritual, feeling good, harmonious, creative and handmade ("do-it-yourself"). The simple and cozy is preferred, politics and economy are put at the back. On the shelves of bookshops you will find books that adorn names like Slow Tourism, Slow Life, Slow Living, Slow Cooking, Slow Food, Slow Journalism, etc. Slow down as a socio-cultural trend movement and symbol of a zeitgeist. Fast-paced life has found its counter-trend in deceleration. Away from hecticness and efficiency thinking, towards slowness, the simple life in harmony with nature and oneself. Deceleration as a means to more enjoyment, quality of life and happiness.

Trend to deceleration

When we allow ourselves the time every now and then to take a closer look, many things feel different: more relaxed, simpler and more meaningful. In a world where everything works - modern, digital, flexible - we are tired of the numerous possibilities and we seem to long for stability, grounding and down-to-earthness. So we dream of family, dog, cottage in the green and desire the world of security and stability. We look for a retreat from the hectic, raving world around us. Older people also feel this urge. Individual people flee into this modern zeitgeist and with this need resemble surprisingly many fellow human beings. Burnout--affected people learn carpentry and do not return to their stressful profession, workaholics open kite surfing schools or the like.

8 Deceleration methods

1. manual work
A hobby that gives pleasure! Being creative and creating something of one's own can help to find reassurance. You can escape from the busy world for a short moment. In your project you decide. (e.g. knitting, building a piece of furniture, baking bread etc.)

2. mindfulness
Find relaxation by concentrating on yourself and your breathing. Try to find out what is important to you, what you actually want. You will notice that your inner restlessness is diminishing and your eyes are sharpened for the essential things. (e.g. relaxation exercises, yoga, Pilates)

3. time-outs
Happy moments in everyday life! Treat yourself to little oases of time-out and simply do nothing! Have a cup of tea or just look out of the window and enjoy the peace and quiet. Or plan a moment in your everyday life that is not planned and do only what you feel like doing.

4th movement
A walk in the fresh air helps to clear your head and also to switch off. Let the surroundings have an effect on you.

5. to-do list
Your list is longer in the evening than in the morning? Then postpone tasks to the next day, week. As soon as the item disappears from today's schedule, you will feel easier.

6. awareness
Do one thing - and do only one thing (e.g. just enjoy the food).

7. thought carousel
"What if I did?" It is better to look ahead, not to argue with past decisions and concentrate on what lies ahead.

8. empathy
Often so many thoughts and plans buzz around in our minds. But by listening to each other you get to know each other better and appreciate each other.