3/9 In Praise of Slowness

What do you do quickly?
What do you do quickly because you have to do it that way?
What do you enjoy doing quickly?

Were you ever characterized as 'quick' in school?
What were you 'quick' at?
What were the results of this?

What do the words fast, quick, speed mean in our culture?

Are these desirable characteristics?

Is there such a thing as 'bad quick'? 'Good quick'?



What do you do slowly?
What do you do slowly because you have to do it that way?
What do you enjoy doing slowly?

Were you ever characterized as 'slow' in school?
What were you slow at?
What were the results of this?

What does 'Slow' mean in our culture?

Is it a desirable characteristic?

What do these words mean: lazy, slacker, 'a bit slow'

Is there such a thing as 'bad slow'? 'Good slow'?



Do you feel you think quickly or slowly?
Do you respond quickly or slowly when things happen?

When do you think it's appropriate to do things quickly, with speed and adrenaline?

When do you think it's appropriate to do things slowly, with indolence and languor? (Actually, I found it very hard to find positive words that meant slow without meaning weak, lacking energy, illness or bad intention!)

Do you think we're expected to do more in the same amount of time than before?
Not just in work acheivement, but also in playing, or travelling?
Do you think kids have more homework to do than we did when we went to school?

Do you yourself expect to fit more or less into a day than you used to?
Do you give yourself more or less downtime than you used to?



When is the last time you did nothing?
For how long did you do it?
How often do you do nothing?
Does waiting for something to happen count as doing nothing?

What is your default mode? Busy? Spacing out? Thinking about something? Planning your next move? Finding something on the internet? Looking for something?

If someone randomly asks you, "What are you thinking," would you ever answer, "Nothing"?