How to slow down time

Did you get to the end of '22 and wonder: Where did the time go? Our sense of days, months, even years racing past can be unnerving. Isn't there a way to keep the minutes from slipping through our fingers so quickly?

It's hard to believe, but we do have control over how we experience time. When we move our focus from marquee events – the long-awaited vacations, the new homes, the landmark birthdays – and include life's smaller details in our daily round of attention, we can slow the pulse of clock-time and get to something deeper and more profound.

Think of it as the temporal equivalent of micro-decorating: attending to things overlooked, until they reveal their unnoticed significance.

I've kept wordy journals in the past, but they were boom-or-bust affairs, flaming to life and burning out just as quickly. I didn't create a sustained practice until I pared it down to the minimum: just writing down three things I was grateful for at the end of a day, then doing it again the next.

At first, it was a strain to come up with three items repeatedly. But after a while, my perception began to shift. I developed an alertness to life's tantalizing minutia, flagging things in my head that I was sure to record that evening.

Sustaining a habit is hard. I figured out some tricks to keep me going with this daily discipline.

Keep it simple

If I committed to lengthy descriptions, I'd eventually say I'm too tired, I'll do this tomorrow... and make the same excuse the next day. Sticking to an easy three-bullet format means I stay motivated.

Keep it visible

If I had to search for the tools, I'd be tempted to skip it. My Moleskine sketchbook and Muji pen are fixtures at my bedside – and the conspicuous reminder works.

Keep it flexible

If I do miss a day (it happens), I don't beat myself up. The next day, I'll try to include something from the day before... but if I can't think of anything, that's okay too. The point is to keep going.

I've now been at it since spring 2017, and the growing sketchbook collection feels like tangible evidence of moments savoured, life magnified, and time slowed.

Do you have any routines that help you slow down time? Let me know and I may feature your idea in an upcoming issue.

For a time-related tip about mornings, check out this back issue in praise of alarm clocks.

Until next Wednesday,