I heard an interview with a former US Navy SEAL. He left me with a phrase that repeats in my mind.
Slow is smooth; smooth is fast.
This relates to other advice I’ve received and to my life experiences.
Once I rushed through everything trying to do three or four things at once. I was frustrated with progress as well as tired. Driving in traffic, I’d speed up only to be stopped at the next traffic light in the slow lane passed by the cars I’d just passed.
Rushing didn’t get me anywhere faster. Maybe just a speeding ticket.
I’ve not only learned that phrase, I have also learned to embody it.
I concentrate on one thing at a time. That doesn’t mean that a hundred thoughts don’t pop up. They do. But I’ve learned to move past and come back to task.
Don’t rush the conversation.
Allow time to get where I’m going. If circumstances make me late, well, then I’m late. That’s life.
Even eating. Chew more. Swallow less. Slow and smooth.
Even working out. Some things require intensity, but don’t rush through (well, unless you’re doing sprints!). I look at the dumbbells. Select the weights. Raise slowly to extension. Lower slowly and smoothly. Do my sets. Amazingly the workout is done before I know it.
In your spiritual life, it’s the same. When you read–read. When you meditate–meditate. Allow the time. Savor it even.
