Most people I have been talking to are saying that this year has been massive. The usual ramp up into the year just didn’t happen – it was January… Camera… Action. They’re also saying that the year is passing by in the flash of an eye. I wholeheartedly agree with both of those sentiments.
We often take it as a given that the speed at which we feel time passes might be due to our age, but like most things in life, research shows it’s more complicated than that. How we perceive the passing of time is directly related to what’s going on in our brains and bodies.
Research has confirmed that how we perceive time is a function of our focus and attention, our eye movements and how much stimuli we perceive. The more we perceive, the faster it feels time is passing. Time passes faster when we’re busy or distracted because we’re focused, and our eyes and minds are busy processing information. If you have ever been in a flow state where you’re immersed in something, or just ‘stuck’ on TikTok or other social media, you know what I’m talking about. It also feels faster when we need to focus, but are tired, fatigued, or aren’t feeling on our ‘A game’ for important tasks. When we need to deliver but don’t feel up to doing a great job, it creates stress, leaving us in a flurry to try to do more, and fast. We’re at war with the clock. But the good news is that you can slow down time.
The trick to slowing down time is to reduce your stress and reactive responses. Living in a perpetual state of feeling ‘behind’ or having a long ‘to do’ list is tough on our minds and bodies. Any break you have is a great time to try to reset, rewire, and refresh your brain to help you carry on in tip top condition. The great news is you don’t need a lot of time, money, or special resources to de-stress.
Here are five things you can do on a break, even with a busy family visiting, party attending, and treat eating schedule:
- Have a nap – short naps can improve relaxation, alertness, mood, and memory, amongst other benefits. Famous nappers include Winston Churchill, JFK, Arnold Schwarzenegger, and LeBron James. Naps are best when they’re short and in the in early afternoon. The ultimate luxury that’s within your budget! You can read more about what a good nap looks like and why you should have one here.
- Read fiction – while I love a good nonfiction book, reading fiction can have big benefits. Research shows that reading fiction can help us stay open minded and make better decisions. Now that’s something I can advocate for!
- Express gratitude – practicing gratitude may sound fluffy, but research suggests that it can help with depression, anxiety, and even physical conditions and diseases. Focusing on the good in our lives can enhance our trust, confidence, and ability to solve problems. For maximum benefit, gratitude practice should be regular and specific. In even better news, the benefits of practicing gratitude are both short AND long term.
- Do something in nature – spending time in nature, even if that nature is a park in the city, can improve your mood, working memory, ability to focus, and even your relationships. Some research has shown that even the sounds of nature alone can help our brains. You can read more about the mental and physical benefits of spending time in nature here.
- Put your phone away – while it’s tempting to ‘turn off’ by scrolling on social media or going on a YouTube video adventure, that ‘mindless’ activity can negatively impact your mood, leaving you feeling stressed, anxious, or depressed. Taking a break from your phone can help to improve your ‘presence’, sleep, relationships, and productivity. In the very least, if you can, turn off work email notifications and try to minimise social media use while you’re on a break. Read more about the benefits of putting your phone away here.
If I had a dollar for every time I heard someone say, “Things will slow down next week / month / year”, I would be a billionaire by now. Now, I’m not Nostradamus or Baba Vanga, but every year is predicted to bring even more volatility than the last, with even more expected crises related to cost of living, geopolitical conflict, and breakdowns in social cohesion, amongst other risks. Workplaces will likely focus on efficiency and invest in efficiency measures, including involving AI, to achieve more with less. The talent war will continue, so organisations need to think differently about how work happens and who does it. What this means is even more change and uncertainty is coming, things likely won’t slow down, and that all of us need some time and space to regroup and prepare for the next onslaught.
As a self-confessed, recovering stress bug, I also practise the abovementioned five things as much as I can.
References:
https://www.webmd.com/healthy-aging/news/20230418/why-time-flies-faster-with-age
https://www.nature.com/articles/nn0705-850
https://www.elston.com.au/6-shocking-predictions-for-2024-and-beyond/
https://www.hrmonline.com.au/section/featured/five-work-trends-to-look-out-for-in-2024/
https://www.ftadviser.com/equities/2023/12/18/forecast-for-2024-volatility-and-geopolitical-uncertainty/