Tag: lifestyle

How Slow-Living Are You?

Stephanie O’Dea is author of Slow Living: Cultivating a Life of Purpose in a Hustle-Driven World. She is a “slow-living coach.” This made me laugh out loud. She must not be in the midst of a major move which entails constant decision-making hustle around packing/unpacking a myriad of stuff: Will this fit in my new home? If not, what do I do with it? Then, upon arrival, this will not fit! What do I do with it? However, I do know I am making move-hustle progress because my dreams no longer are about packing; last night I dreamt about vacation, an escape from the unpacking process.

O’Dea started her slow-living journey with “A Year of Slow Cooking.” She believes that cooking is a chore, not something that she wants to do, so she loves her crockpot. I gave away my crockpot. I enjoy cooking fresh food “from scratch,” but I might need some slow-living ideas when I finish unpacking boxes.

I found out that I could “join 10,000+ Students of Life” by subscribing to the “Sloww (not a typo!) Sunday newsletter.” Instead, I chose to hustle up on this phenomenon briefly online before jumping into another book for my overcrowded bookshelves. Here are some highlights of Slow Living and the Slow Movement:

  • Organizational psychologist Geir Berthelsen created a think tank in 1999, The World Institute of Slowness, advocating that “…the best thinking comes from a walk in the slow lane…slowness is the forgotten dimension to time. Unlike chronological time, it is non-linear, time here and now, time that works for you, extraordinary time. So why be fast when you can be slow? Slowness is also about balance, so if you must hurry, then hurry slowly.” Is hurry slowly an oxymoron?
  • Nearly two decades later, Canadian journalist Carl Honoré wrote a book titled In Praise of Slowness: Challenging the Cult of Speed.
  • Beyond slow living and slow food, today there is a slew (or stew) of slowness – slow money, slow parenting, slow education, slow reading, slow medicine, slow gardening, and slow religion. In 30 countries there are 236 cities that call themselves slow cities! Who knew?
  • According to Slow Living 201 (I skipped the 101 version), there are 15 adjectives for slow living: paced, unbusy, balanced, intentional, connected, deep, purposeful, holistic, soulful, long-view, low-stress, eased, time-rich, conscious, and mindful. https://www.sloww.co/slow-living-201/

I completely agree that mindfulness is a practice well worth putting into your daily routine. I participate every morning in an online mindfulness group with 20 minutes of silent mindful reflection. I practice mindfulness at other times of the day too, especially when gardening or cooking. I find these slow-breath actions grounding — literally grounding when working with soil in my yard. But honestly, I use some hustle in other parts of my life. Do I need to read O’Dea’s Slow Living book?

Pearls of Peace (PoP) Quiz

411. Do you engage in slow living some part of your day?

412. What aspect of slow living might be beneficial for you?  

Digital Zoomers & Boomers

Gen Z’ers (Zoomers) – born between 1997 and 2012 (or currently the ages of 12-27) – have needs that current culture has overlooked. Zoomers are suggested to be the “best educated” generation. In the U.S. 57 % of Zoomers have enrolled in a 2-year or 4-year college (compared to 52% of Millennials and 43% of Gen X). Education has a goal of teaching critical thinking skills, but there is a lag in teaching social skills as Zoomers also are identified as the loneliest generation. Who teaches kindness and sincerity?

Chinese sage Confucious (551-479 BCE) focused on personal and governmental morality with kindness and sincerity as inspirations. He is attributed with this pithy observation: “Education breeds confidence. Confidence breeds hope. Hope breeds peace.” We certainly need to figure out how to wage peace on the planet. Loneliness is not an arrow headed in a direction toward the target of peace. Statistics kept on mass shooters show that individuals are younger than in previous years; the median age of U.S. mass shooters from 1980-1989 was 39 but the median age since 2020 is 22 years old.

Shooters at K-12 schools and colleges have been current or former students. Many were victims of cruel teasing and bullying. What is lacking in our educational systems for this “best educated” generation?

Social psychologist Jonathan Haidt teaches ethical leadership at New York University’s Stern School of Business. When interviewed by Krista Tippett, Haidt offered this educational recommendation: “Let’s cancel 2 years of math for all of our high school students…and put in statistics, basic economics…and introductory psychology.”  In a 2022 essay in The Atlantic, he addressed the monumental role of social media upon young minds.                                  

I am always amazed to see dependent teens holding some digital device in their hands instead of playing the old-fashioned way (i.e., using one’s hands for a myriad of independent possibilities). A recent U.S. Congressional hearing that grilled the major CEO’s of social media will not curb the time Zoomers spend on their gadgets. Zoomers are guinea pigs as the first generation to be weaned on social media and the internet.

Baby boomers — born between 1946 and 1964 (or currently the ages of 60-78) — are hitting retirement age in record numbers, although 1 in 5 individuals 65+ choose to continue working according to a Pew Research Center study. However, 2024 is slated as a record-breaking year for U.S. retirement as an average of 11,000 Americans a day will celebrate their 65th birthday.

How many of the newly retired or semi-retired will join Zoomers in spending most of their time in the digital universe? What other possibilities might exist for this highly talented generation? What opportunities are there for getting involved in some intergenerational activities that interrupt loneliness for both Zoomers and retired Boomers?

 Pearls of Peace (PoP) Quiz

261. How much of your day do you hand over to a digital existence?  

262. What might you do to reach out to Zoomers?