Knowing When It's Time to Slow Down

One of the hardest things about being an entrepreneur is getting to know people. Really, transparently getting to know them - past the perfectly crafted life and business facade you find on the web. Don’t you look around and wonder why everyone else seems to have all their shit together? I know I do. And I feel the pressure to act the same way, to live up to that fabricated expectation of togetherness.

But that’s not what you need. And it’s not what I need.

Right now I’m sitting on my living room floor surrounded by boxes. Boxes of books, boxes of clothes, boxes of kitchen utensils. Pieces of a life I’ve shared with a man for the past four years in this apartment, and another four years before that. That part of my life is ending, and we’re both moving out this weekend.

I’d love to say that I’ve got it under control. And I do, to a point. But this breakup, and this move, have consumed my life for the past month. I’ve been spending more time than normal shoving my face with bacon and onion pizza, and less time than normal working on my business.

I had a launch planned for the middle of June, and did nothing to put it out there. I’ve slacked off on writing blog posts. I haven’t made any new connections on social media. I beat myself up about that for a while, and then I came across this.

Who knew that chirping crickets - a sound that usually fades into background noise after a long day - could sound so eerie, and so beautiful?

It made me think about what it means to slow down. We want to have it all, and we feel like we have to do it all to get there.

But sometimes you just need a fucking break.

Sometimes you need to focus on the thing that’s right in front of you. If it hurts, let it hurt. If it’s scary, allow yourself to be scared and give yourself the time you need to figure it out. And who knows, it might even turn out to be beautiful.

Let’s all stop hiding behind the internet and pretending that life is perfect. Because it’s really shitty sometimes, and that’s ok. Share the shitty parts and watch how quickly your “business connections” become “life connections.”

This week, I’m forcing myself to spend time outside and with friends and family. I’m playing Spotify like it’s going out of style because it puts me in a good mood. And I’m allowing myself to feel hurt, without forgetting that it’s only temporary.

How about you? What do you do when you need to slow down?

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