Remember back in the “old” days when we had to wait until a page was loaded before we could get our information, make a decision or go on to the next task? In the last 15 years it seems as if everything has increased to mock speed, especially technology.
When I purchased my first IBM laptop, I was overwhelmed with just learning about a C drive. While it did feel difficult, I had lots of time to learn and wait until everything appeared on the screen so I could go at my own pace.
Skip forward to today and now I get frustrated by a page downloading in more than a nano second. Yet, I hear a voice whispering in my ear, “Your body, mind and spirit are now being controlled entirely by a screen.” Whatever pops up, I instantaneously want to respond and my emotions seem to be no longer under my control.
For instance, I can feel upset, anxious, joyous, relieved and overwhelmed just by looking at my computer. Upset, anxious and overwhelmed if I happen to look up symptoms my body might be having at the time and letting Google give me a death sentence.
Joyous and relieved to find out that Google also told me not to worry, just take X Y or Z to be better and faster forever.
I know I have lost the “pause” in my life that I experienced when waiting and watching for my page to download when I just had to sit, breathe and wait.
In my coaching course, I am learning how important taking a quiet pause can be in allowing a client to find their own way, think their own thoughts and come up with their own answers. I was advised to pause and really listen, do nothing else. I like to envision a page slowly loading before I open my mouth.
In the 21st century, pauses have mostly disappeared. My desire is to create space for clients, friends, family or myself to allow a pause before speaking and reacting. I must remember to put some space between the stimulus (emails, breaking news, rings, beeps, reminders and less than happy conversations) and the response (my answering emails, sending a text, getting upset over breaking news and quick non-thinking responses).
To help myself return to pausing before reacting, I will use technology to remind me to take that pause and breathe hourly by scheduling a beautiful ring tone on my phone and computer.
What would it take to take a pause the length of a slow page downloading every hour? Would love to hear!
