How to Embrace Slow Living and Enjoy Every Moment More

 

 

 

1. Enjoy a Gentle Stroll in a Peaceful Place
   When you go for a leisurely walk in a park or other peaceful spot, you can reconnect with the natural rhythm of life instead of feeling overwhelmed by its frenetic urban counterpart. Nature excels at slow living; its activities are never rushed. For example, bees collecting pollen are completing a task they know is worthwhile at a speed that feels right for them.
   
   As you drink in your beautiful surroundings, take deep, calming breaths. Learning to enjoy the journey rather than focusing solely on reaching your destination is the key to slow living.
   
   An excellent New Year’s resolution would be to take a gentle stroll every day. Regular, relaxing walks will help you to live at a calmer pace.
   
   
2. Decide What Matters the Most to You
   Getting back to nature clears your mind. After an enjoyable walk, take advantage of your mental clarity by deciding what your priorities and goals are for 2019.
   
   When you’re juggling a demanding career, family commitments and social engagements, you can feel compelled to cram more and more activities into your schedule. Hi-tech gadgets such as smartphones limit your ability to ‘switch off’ and relax, even at bedtime. It’s all too easy to spread yourself too thinly and end up unfulfilled and unhappy.
   
   Slow living involves recognising that you can’t do everything and also that you don’t need to do it all. That’s an empowering thought. Instead of struggling with an unrealistic to-do list, be selective and work steadily and carefully. Devote your energies to the activities that make the greatest contribution to your sense of security and wellbeing.
   
   
3. Engage Fully with Each Activity
   It’s impossible to do something to the best of your ability if your mind is wandering. Slow living highlights the importance of doing one thing at a time. If you’re composing an email, for instance, give it your full attention instead of breaking off to check social media notifications.
   
   A great way to ground yourself in the present is to focus on your senses. As you slice a loaf of bread, admire its golden crust, enjoy its aroma, listen to the soft sound it makes while you’re cutting it, and feel the difference in texture between the crust and crumb. When you eat a slice, concentrate on the delicious taste.
   
   Slow living means focusing on the here and now – and appreciating each moment more as a result. Engaging fully with each activity helps you to be more productive at work and more relaxed during leisure time.
   
   
4. Always Eat Meals at a Table
   So many people find themselves grabbing an unsatisfying breakfast on the way to work, eating lunch over a keyboard and settling for a TV dinner on the sofa. In the spirit of ‘New Year, new attitude’, how about endeavouring to eat each meal at a table instead?
   
   Slow living has the potential to transform your mealtimes. Consider how much more enjoyable they’ll be when you’re sitting around a table with relatives, friends or colleagues, chewing food slowly and conversing freely.
   
   What you eat is important too. Aim to visit your local farmers’ market regularly from 2019 onwards and cook as many meals from scratch as you can (our blog features plenty of tasty recipes to inspire you). After all, fast food culture is the opposite of slow living.
   
   
5. Brew and Savour Slow Coffee
   Slow coffee goes hand in hand with slow living. Carefully measuring out freshly ground beans and hot water gives you the chance to focus your mind and enjoy some peace. That makes brewing slow coffee a habit worth cultivating as you head into 2019.
   
   Whether you use one of our stylish French press, smart Pour over or fascinating Vacuum coffee makers, you can easily make delicious, warming drinks while enhancing your slow living lifestyle. Brewing slow coffee when you fancy a cup of joe and savouring every drop is a fantastic example of how slow living helps you to turn everyday activities into pleasant, meditative rituals.
   
   Many other frequently performed tasks, from folding clothes to moisturising your skin, can become islands of calm on busy days when you slow down a little.

Slow, Simple, Satisfying

The beauty of slow living is that there are no set rules. This lifestyle choice can easily be tailored to suit your needs. However you pursue slow living, all of us at Bodum hope that 2019 will be your most successful, satisfying year yet.