Slow Living 101: What the Slow Living Philosophy is, and isn't.
Recently, the concept of slow living has become more mainstream. As people are realizing that they no longer enjoy the constant fast-paced society we live in, more and more are starting to shift their lifestyles.
What slow living is:
Slow living is a philosophy that promotes quality over quantity in all different forms. It’s an idea that with a few changes, you can step away from the hustle and bustle, constantly moving society we live in when the time is right to do so. A key idea behind slow living is that you take a moment to determine what the right amount of time is to spend on a task. It may be fast, or it may be able to be a bit slower. It is a shift from doing things as fast as possible to as well and as presently as possible.
What slow living isn't:
Slow living does not mean doing everything at a snail’s pace. It is not about taking as long as possible to complete tasks, curating your home to match a certain aesthetic, or spending your days baking bread. From slow food, to sustainability, to reducing your mindless purchasing, there are so many ways to live a slower life that it is impossible to stick to one given framework. Instead, understanding the core principles can help guide you to make the changes that suit your lifestyle. Slow living isn’t about perfection and it isn’t only for people who “can” slow down. You need to make conscious choices to slow down your life, it will not happen for you.
How animals can teach us:
As you can tell by our name, we love pets and they are a perfect example of slow living. Pets show us that it is ok to live in the moment by being happy when we come home, when we sit with them on the couch, and when they go for a ride in the car. They show us that getting outside makes everything better with their uninhibited joy at hearing the word “walkies”. They teach us that once we have our basic needs met, we can be happy. It isn’t about having the newest or best leash or toys, most dogs are happy with the basics.
How to start implementing slow living in your life:
– A key pillar in the slow living lifestyle is to begin by examining your relationship with your technological devices. How much time, consciously and not, do you spend in front of them. Do you scroll on your phone while the television is on? Are you on your phone first thing in the morning and the last thing at night? Slow living is about understanding when enough is enough and it’s time to put the screens away and be present.
– Another key point is understanding that we have been conditioned in society to have a “go, go, go” mentality. Whether that be the constantly updating world of social media or the idea that we must always be doing something in our own lives, FOMO (fear of missing out) is exactly what slow living tries to prevent. Learning to say no to things in order to prioritize what is important to you is crucial, and as a chronic people-pleaser, I understand how hard that mindset is to rewire. Sitting down and being honest with yourself about what your boundaries are, what brings you joy, and what you have the bandwidth for, is a great first step to bring slow living into your life.
– Mealtimes are also a great place to incorporate slow living. So many of us are on our phones or watching tv while we eat which leads to a lot of mindless meals. Did you know that the average person spends a little over 1 hour per week eating? If you eat 2 meals a day, that’s around 4 minutes per meal. However, it takes approximately 20 minutes from the time you start eating for your brain to send out signals of fullness. Eating at a slower pace ensures you are allowing your stomach to receive those signals, preventing overeating and that dreaded stuffed feeling. During your next meal, eat as you normally would and time yourself to see how long you take. Try to increase that time by a minute each day. If meals are the time you relax and watch something, put on a 20-minute show and be mindful of having your meal last that long.
At HempMy Pet™, we incorporate many ideas from the slow living movement into our business. In the garden, letting our plants grow as long as they need to reach the quality and efficacy we stand for. And during extraction, we make sure the process is done slowly at very low temperatures to maintain the medicinal integrity of the extract. As well as during formulation, as we make our hemp-infused oils and biscuits in small batches to ensure consistency and potency. Loving care and quality is at the core of everything we do, and we love that this philosophy promotes the same for all of our lives.
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