Sometimes I forget to stop and smell the roses. I think a lot of us do that. We get so busy in life that all we ever do is rush from one thing to the next until we burn out. Well, it doesn’t have to be that way. We can learn to slow down and enjoy life again with these 15 tips.
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1. DON’T WALK SO FAST
I am a fast walker. At work, I run a million miles an hour just to get my job done. I don’t realize how fast I’m going until I bump into someone.
Then I make a conscious effort to slow down.
But why does it have to be that way? Why can’t I just slow down before I run into someone? You’de think I’d know better after a while but I keep on doing it.
And when I get home after work, I still run a million miles an hour. I find that I’m practically running to keep up with all the chores I have to do when I get home from a long day of work. Dishes. Laundry. Housework. Supper.
It never ends.
I guess I think if I can increase how fast I walk, I’ll be more productive. Sometimes it works, but mostly it creates more stress. When you walk fast, you will eventually burn out.
Stop it!
I’m talking to myself too.
I need to deliberately slow my pace so I can stop and smell the roses and begin to enjoy my life again instead of watching it wiz by.
2. DON’T EAT SO FAST
I eat too fast. We all eat too fast. We barely have time to finish lunch and we’re right back at it. We gobble things down barely tasting our meal and that’s not healthy.
We need to slow down when it comes to eating. If you feel rushed, stop. Take a breath and savor the tastes and textures of the food you’re eating.
Not only will it taste better, but your stomach will thank you.
3. ENJOY THE OUTDOORS
We all need to get outside more. Take in those vitamin D rays and enjoy the warmth on your face. Nature helps us relax and enjoy the moment.
Go for a walk on your breaks and get back to nature. Watch the trees as they sway back and forth in the wind. They will help you slow down and relax.
I do that at work, and I can tell you it has really helped me. I’m not as stressed anymore, and I seem to be able to calm down when work gets too stressful.
4. PRAYER AND MEDITATION
I practice the Christian faith so I know the value of prayer and meditation, but even if you’re not spiritual, you can still enjoy the art of meditation.
There are a lot of podcasts that teach you how to meditate. What that does is slow your thought pattern down instead of having a busy mind all the time.
A busy mind never sleeps.
Meditation is great to do before bedtime to help you relax. If you’re like me you can add a bit of prayer, and before you know it your mind will calm down and be ready for a good night’s sleep.
5. JUST BREATHE
I forget to breathe. I let myself get so balled up with problems and stresses of the day that I forget there is oxygen in the air for me.
I actually have to stop, take a breath, and repeat.
A person can get so caught up in what they are doing that they forget to breathe like me. Don’t do that. We can’t function if we don’t have enough air.
6. LISTEN TO MUSIC
Okay, I’m going to tell you a little secret. I love listening to the Irish and Celtic Music Podcast on my phone every day when I go for a walk on my lunch and breaks.
I don’t know what it is about that kind of music, but it calms me down immediately. Bagpipes, flutes, violins, and harps do it for me every time.
Listen to whatever type of music you love. Music calms the soul and helps us put things into perspective. Often times our perspective is off and we need to regain our composure.
Music does that for me. It helps me slow down and learn to smell the roses again. Life is short and if we don’t learn to enjoy it now, we may never get another chance.
Let that smooth violine transform your life.
7. LISTEN TO ASMR
I didn’t know what ASMR was until I stumbled upon it on Youtube one day. ASMR is an acronym for Autonomous, Sensory, Meridian, Response.
Basically, it is when you listen to sounds that calm you down.
I like to listen to thunderstorms when I write. I don’t know what it is about thunderstorms, but they calm me down and help me to be creative.
Other people like to listen to things like crickets or a dog snoring. Those things help them calm down. There are a plethora of ASMR channels on Youtube that will help you find what you’re looking for.
I wrote a more in-depth article about it if you want to go to the following link, What is ASMR? I have done a lot of research on the subject and you’ll find it quite fascinating.
8. TURN OFF YOUR PHONE
This is a given. When you use your cell phone too much, you miss the world around you. As soon as you put it away for a while and smell the roses, you will feel like you can enjoy life more.
I also wrote an article on How to Stop Using Your Phone as Much, if you want to learn some practical things that work.
9. LEARN TO SAY NO
This is a hard one for me because I am a people pleaser. I want to help everyone and I certainly don’t want them to be mad at me so I say yes all the time.
Learning to be honest with yourself is key. If you know you don’t have time to help with a fundraiser, and you really just want to say no, then just say no.
People will survive if you can’t help out.
It took me a while to realize this, and I’m still a work in progress. But it’s important because if we say yes to everything until we’re so busy we don’t have time to smell the roses, we will regret it.
10. LEARN POSITIVITY
I listen to motivational speakers almost every day and it helps me immensely. I download podcasts and listen to them when I go for a walk.
They help me stay positive.
Staying positive is a difficult task when you’re tired and worn out. Because I’m doing so much all the time, regret sets in and I sway to the negative.
Listening to motivational speakers like Joel Olsteen and Brendon Burchard really pulls me back to the positive side of life. Things don’t seem so bleak and I find myself enjoying life again.
But it’s a cognitive effort. It doesn’t just happen. You have to make a deliberate choice to be positive in life. When you do, you will begin to smell the roses again.
11. DON’T MULTITASK
People actually think multitasking is a good thing, but it isn’t. All multitasking does is make us busier and busier. The more we do it, the more other people expect of us.
If we want to slow down and smell the roses, we have to stop trying to do everything at once.
12. GET OFF SOCIAL MEDIA
Social media in itself isn’t bad. It’s a great way to keep in touch with family and friends. What is bad is how much time we waste on it.
If you find yourself on social media for hours at a time, you might want to limit it. If you waste too much time you won’t get your work done.
If I know I need to clean the house so I can relax and watch a movie on my day off, but I get distracted and spend 3 hours scrolling Facebook, it’s counterproductive.
Stay off social media so you’ll have time to smell the roses.
13. TAKE A TRIP
Sometimes I feel like all I ever do is work. I go to work, come home, eat, clean, and start all over again the next day. I forget that there is more to life than working all the time.
I need more vacations!
We all do.
Take the time to travel. Take a day trip with your spouse. Enjoy an afternoon of play. When you do that, you’ll find yourself slowing down enough to smell the roses again.
14. VISIT LOVED ONES
Life can get so busy that we forget to communicate with the ones we love. We forget to text. We forget to call. We forget to go over and have coffee with friends and relatives.
We have to make a cognitive effort to visit with people or it won’t happen.
Set up a time in advance to go for coffee with people. Schedule it in.
When we visit with loved ones more, it makes us feel like we have a life again. We will slow down and smell the roses and enjoy everything that much more.
15. LIVE IN THE MOMENT
Nowadays, with the advancement of technology, we forget to live in the moment. We think we have to PR everything. We stop and take a selfie everywhere we go.
We take a picture of the meal we made or the project we’re making.
We post it on social media.
When we’re out having fun, we’re constantly taking pictures with our phones and posting to social media. We never quite get to enjoy the moment anymore.
That is a shame.
If we don’t enjoy the moment, we will never be able to stop and smell the roses. Life will become such a performance that we will be constantly looking for the next opportunity to take a selfie and publicize ourselves.
We have to stop that. If we don’t, we’ll never see the beauty right in front of us. We will never see the cherub smiles of our children and grandchildren as they run and play.
I know I covered this already but put your darn cell phone away. Live life in the raw, away from the temptations of social media. Enjoy each other’s company without looking for an opportunity to film it.
You don’t need to give everyone a play-by-play of your life.
When you realize that, you will be able to stop and smell the roses any time your heart desires!
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Author Kathleen Morris
Kathleen Morris is a successful published author, blogger, and YouTuber. She enjoys writing about things she’s passionate about and making a difference in the world.
I am 57yrs.old and I love Kathleen Morris,! I’ve read her book “The Funny Side of Menopause” hil ar i ous!!!! It got me through the change. And now I do stop and smell the Rose’s. Thank you for being you. Tracey A
Thank you, Tracey! You made me smile today! I’m glad you enjoyed my book!