It’s Okay To Slow Down In Life

In a world obsessed with productivity, deciding to slow down can make you feel like a failure. Every time you go on social media, you see people who seem to be doing all of the things, all the time, and they’re living their best lives. When you watch these people living such busy, but happy lives, it’s easy to feel like yours is lackluster.

How are these people managing to not only do it all but to do it all so glamorously? 

I think it all comes down to a simple fact: they’re not. Even if they do it all, they have many unglamorous moments; they choose not to share those moments with the world. Social media makes it easy to curate the perfect life to showcase. But in truth, it’s not so easy to live that perfect life. 

As a lifelong perfectionist, I’ve always struggled with overworking myself. I’ve often sacrificed my physical and mental health to sustain my career. In undergrad, I was in a rigorous theatre conservatory, and we used to joke that you could only have two out of three things: sleep, social life, or good grades. 

And, during my senior year of undergrad, I only slept 3 to 5 hours a night because of all the work I did; I truly was not okay. I consistently pushed myself to the limit, so afraid to stop working and fall behind.  I didn’t want to be a failure or weak. No, I wanted to prove to everyone that I deserved to be there and have a successful career. 

I was 100% willing to sacrifice my health just to achieve success. 

In 2020, when the pandemic hit,  I lost my full-time job of almost 5 years. I poured everything I had into that job, so when I lost it, it felt like everything around me shattered. At the time, I didn’t know who I was anymore. I didn’t know what I wanted out of my life anymore. Most of all, I didn’t know what to do. 

That was when I started to realize how much of my life I lost to working and always trying to do the most and be the best. Not only had I sacrificed my health, but I also sacrificed my relationships. I frequently canceled on friends and family because of work. Instead of using my vacation days to truly relax, I used them to work other jobs. I never prioritized dating; my career was always my top priority.

I  missed out on so many years of my life because I refused to slow down. 

Now, at 33, I feel like everything is finally starting to catch up to me. I have health issues I never imagined would happen to me. I’ve lost friendships. And I have finally hit a point where I know that I have no choice but to slow down. 

It’s scary to change your life, even when you make changes for the better. When you constantly run on empty so people see you as successful, the idea of slowing down scares you. Not only does it seem impossible, but it also feels terrifying. 

Worries run through your mind. You worry that you will become irrelevant if you stop taking on the extra opportunities people have gotten accustomed to you taking. You worry that you’ll never find success if you stop working at the pace you have been working at. And you worry who you’ll be when you slow down because you’ve never taken the time to know yourself. 

But I promise you: slowing down is necessary. 

No one is meant to be productive 24/7. You are a human, not a machine. And, as a human, you have to sleep, eat, and take time to recharge and live your life. Your career and your success will not matter if you aren’t around to have them. 

You can start slowing down with small changes. Set a dedicated time to stop working each day. Start saying no to opportunities that overwhelm you. Use your vacation days to actually rest. You can live your life for you instead of living it for who you think you should be. 

Each day, you can begin to choose yourself a little more, and that will make all the difference. 

Photo by Erik Mclean on Unsplash