The Dreadful Art of Rushing

Imagine this.

Your morning alarm goes off at 6am.  You hit snooze a few times. Just five more minutes, you think to yourself, as you have over an hour before you have to leave the house.

Plenty of time for a little more shut-eye.

Suddenly, it’s thirty-five minutes before you have to head out the door. However, you still have to feed the cat, take a shower, you were hell-bent on exercising – that’s not happening, send that really important email, and make a coffee.

You ask yourself if you have enough time to do everything, but it doesn’t matter, that’s all the time you have. The covers fly off, you jump out of bed, and rush to the bathroom. You have to do that too.

After taking care of all your morning duties in what should have taken an hour, you dash out the door. With a bit of coffee on your silk blouse, your hair still damp, you depart from home. Unfortunately, you have to circle your way around the block to be sure you closed the garage door. Confirmed, it was closed.

Wait, did you lock the door? Too late now.

The highway is a sea full of red lights as you inch your way to work. Anxiety slowly begins to settle in. More specifically, your belly begins to ache and your throat begins to close.

There’s no doubt, you’re going to be late.

Might as well slap on some make-up as you didn’t have time to do that in peace at home. The lady next to you shoots you a dirty look while you apply mascara in your rearview mirror. “F off,” you think to yourself as you realize you’re in a sour mood.

You begin to make deals with a higher power that if your boss is not there when you arrive you will never hit the snooze button again for as long as you shall live.

As you pull into the parking lot, you’re practically on two wheels. Slamming on the brakes, more coffee spills on your already soiled blouse. While sprinting into work you finally drop the remainder of your coffee on the sidewalk (RIP caffeine). Just as you feel a sense of calmness because you finally made it to the office, you see your boss.

“Did you get a chance to email the client?”, your boss asks.

“[email protected]&%!”, you think to yourself.

Yeah, you didn’t really get everything done like you thought you did.

Whoof! I got anxiety writing that. That is no way to begin our daily existence. Plus, it’s bad for our health. Rushing leads to anxiety, anxiety leads to stress.

And we know that stress is garbage for our mental and physical states.

Try as we might, rushing is an issue. 70% of the folks in our Instagram community polled that they are often in a constant state of rushing. We’re raising our hands too. Hurrying is an epidemic.

Whatever the impetus behind the rushing is, there are tools to slow down here and there throughout the day in order to avoid the dreadful rush.

Here are some ways to be more mindful about self-care and time management.

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Tips to help you slow down:

– Hit snooze, but just once.

– Have your outfit, bag/purse, lunch,  and coffee set up the night before.

– Feeling overwhelmed during the day – take a true break and disconnect from technology.

– Take a walk outside – nature is healing.

– Stop and do nothing for 20 minutes. Ok, maybe read or nap.

– Take mental notes when completing small tasks like locking the door and blowing out candles. This will help you avoid worrying.

– Cook a meal and enjoy it.

– Journal or write a card to a loved one.

– Say no to overcommitting.

– Commit to going over your weekly and daily planner a week and day in advance on the regular to be sure you didn’t double book and so you know how to prep for the coming days.

– Close your eyes and take a few deep breaths – you can meditate anywhere, anytime.

– Mentally tell yourself to slow down.

– Take yourself out to dinner or to a movie. Enjoy some time alone. Bring a book.

– Plan a visit with a friend you haven’t seen in awhile, no phones allowed.

– Don’t beat yourself up if you have a mishap from rushing, take some deep breaths, slow down, and move on with your day. Shit happens.

– Time block your calendar to get extra organized.

– Try doing one thing at a time instead of multitasking. You may find that it’s more productive.

– Clean out a cabinet or closet.

– Take a little CBD or cannabis.

– OR take a little cannabis then clean out a cabinet.

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Remember – life is a marathon, not a sprint.