Tuesday, April 20, 2010

Feeling groovy

Anybody remember that song? The one that went Slow down, you move too fast? Ah, well, I'm old and that's not the point of this post. The point is that there’s no end of demand on our time. Jobs that pay the bills, loved ones who well, love us, school, writing, blogging all demand time and attention. And it’s all a balancing act. A lot of us were conditioned to believe that if we just ran faster, worked harder, smarter, better, we could have it all. Do it all. Be it all.

And when we’ve run flat out for far too long, the inevitable happens. We crash and burn. We see plenty of evidence of that around, too. Plot This had a really interesting post here that I thought was really good advice. Check it out and tell me what you think.

Do you rush? Do you freak out and compare yourself to others? Do you think you can slow down? Do you think slowing down will help your writing?

25 comments:

  1. How funny - one of my recent blog posts was titled 'The Sound of Silence' - it seems Simon & Garfunkel are floating their melodic through the blogosphere!

    Thanks for pointing out that post. Love 'slow is the new fast!'. I think I am the other way - I am slow to the point of going backwards at times. But that is just with redrafting - in life I need to be reminded to stop, breathe, look around, and smile. Maybe I should adopt that motto!

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  2. Yes, in answer to all your questions. And, I've had S&G in my car CD player for months now. One of my fav. songs. Slowing down will indeed help my writing. I'm a turtle processor. Slow and steady wins the race, right?

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  3. Ummm Yea... to ALL OF THEM! Freaking out is apart of writing, at least that's what I'm going to say to feel better about myself, lol! I think at times we freak out which causes us to slow down and take a minute to fix our heads and get back in the game. I never slow down for to long but I also overwhelm to quickly... see sometimes there just isn't a happy medium!

    Live a little, enjoy life, and don't let the little things pass you by because your too busy waiting for something big to happen! Life isn't based on big moments, it's based on little moments.

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  4. I'm slowly working through my wip as I edit it. With each word, sentence, paragraph, I'm asking myself tons of questions. When I stop asking the questions, I know it's time for a break. My writing and book has improved big time because of this. And the best part, it'll take many more months before it's ready to query, so my inbox can remain rejection free for a while longer. :)

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  5. Actually, I haven't stressed for years! This is going to sound terribly cheesy, but I went hiking in the Himalayas in 2004 and since then I haven't stressed one bit. I think the relaxed way of life up there just cooled me down:)

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  6. Oh, I'm a rusher! No doubt about that! I like to get from point A to point B as fast a possible. I try not to do that in my writing, but sometimes my brain (and fingers) get the best of me. Hence the reason queries went out before the MS was edited properly. Ah, but those are lessons we learn from, right? ;-)

    I need to slow down in every aspect of my like. Then maybe I wouldn't be so stressed and strung out all the time. Okay, well I'm not like that all the time. Heehee.

    ~JD

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  7. I rush and meander in intervals. I'll get very gungho, then drift into Procrastination Land.

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  8. Yes. Yes. Yes. Yes. Yes. Yes.....infinity...

    I freak out. I lose my mind. I rush. I go crazy. I pray for relaxation.

    Sometimes I manage to pull it all in and see it as I should but not always. I am a constant work in progress and well, I would not have it any other way. ;o)

    Visit My Kingdom Anytime

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  9. I really need to slow down. Moving to NC has helped some, but I find it hard to turn off.

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  10. Slow down? I think I'm afraid if I slow down, I'll come to a screeching halt. It might be an irrational fear, but I have been in that place and it scares me to return to it.

    But I do notice when I at least need to take a break. When nothing works right, doesn't flow, the cogs and gears get jammed up...that means time out. Luckily, I live near the beach or can take a ride on the back of my man's motorcycle or enjoy a book (someone else's!) on a rainy day. :)

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  11. Oh, and thank you so much for posting my giveaway! I appreciates it. :)

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  12. When I'm writing a first draft I can speed up or slow down at will, but not when I'm revising. Revisions are a long, hard slog: version after version until I'm satisfied.

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  13. Very wise words indeed, too often do we convince ourselves that the faster we go, the more we'll get. But, sometimes it's better to just slow down and take a few moments to appreciate everything you already have, as Gandhi said, in his eternal wisdom, "There is more to life than increasing its speed..."

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  14. Great post and good question.

    Patience will help me with my writing. I'm too anxious to submit and it stresses me. I need the time and privacy to do a read aloud, so I can hear what's wrong when I can't see it.

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  15. I do all of those things. That's probably why I'm burnt out right now. Life... it's so difficult sometimes. :)

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  16. I rush. I am a Master Rusher. When I was in primary school, my teacher told my parents I really needed to slow down. And sadly not much has changed! I really need to slow down, take my time and make sure my i's are dotted and t's are crossed.

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  17. I know that song... and now I have it in my head. :)

    I absolutely need to slow down. I've been telling myself that for months and months, but I never listen. At least admitting it is kind of the first step.

    Thanks so much for your kind words yesterday. Sorry I didn't spend much time in the blogging world yesterday, so I missed my chance to comment, but I so appreciate it!

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  18. Such great reminders, I stress out way too much. And it's almost always because I'm comparing myself to someone else who I think is 'better'. Thanks for the link, great, great post :)

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  19. Oh yeah, this is all so true! Thanks for these words—it's so easy to have high expectations and over-commit ourselves.

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  20. Yes to almost all except instead of rushing, I'm paralyzed.

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  21. All the frickin' time... patience was not one of my birth grants.

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  22. I hate it when it's 6:00 AM and I feel like I am already behind! I have an affirmation on my desk at work to remind myself to breathe!

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  23. I seem to have freak out moments on a regular basis...it helps to keep the stress down actually. Ice cream always helps.

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  24. I'm all for slow writing. And slow READING! We need more slow, contemplative reading! Great post.

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  25. I rush and panic and get impatient. Then I crash. Great post :o)

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