With all the new and incredible technologies we are fortunate to have you would think our quality of life would be much improved.    More time to spend doing all the things we have dreamed of doing and spending more time with loved ones.  Sadly, that seems not to be the case.

All that spare time we thought we would have with all these great advances in technology seem to have become filled with even more responsibilities. The amount of hours people spend in work is probably much more than it used to be. Many people don’t even take the vacation time owing to them and even if they do they spend much of that time checking in to their workplace with their phones or laptops.

Today there are huge demands on families and stress levels have increased dramatically. So much for living in the fast lane! People are constantly pulled between professional and personal demands – living on the edge and trying to do too much in order to move ahead and get more money.  Even with the fun of no deposit codes Fair Go, life is still quite demanding.

Everything today is ultra-fast.  Everyone is in such a rush to get to where they are going.  The journey itself is out of mind.  The wonderful view on your way to work doesn’t even register as you race to beat the red light in front of you. If you are looking for help dealing with life, check out John Doe.

With the internet everything has become so high-speed and we are expected to keep up with this ever-growing pace.  It seems that you have no option but to just dive in and swim as fast as you can in order to compete and remain in the fast lane.  There is no tomorrow, everything is expected today. The life we once knew is gone forever.

Time to Set Priorities 

The things we want to do and dreamed of doing are getting lower and lower on our list of priorities.  We push personal commitments aside in favor of professional ones in order to make ends meet.  Our children lack quality time with their parents, as they are constantly juggling work commitments, and therefore spend more time with babysitters and nannies.   

Things like enjoying a few hours in the garden or making your favorite cookie recipe with the help of the kids seems like a distant memory.  There just doesn’t seem to be the time, or the energy for that matter.  Family home cooked meals are a thing of the past with everyone now grabbing a quick bite and perhaps sharing it with whoever is there at the time.   Little conversation is likely as the never-ending focus is on the giant TV screen centered in the middle of the room and the constant squabbling over the remote control. 

Even those long-awaited special holidays have become over-commercialized. Instead of viewing them as a time to spend with family and friends in joyous celebration we are just relieved to get a day off work.  All the time and effort we used to put into choosing cards and presents for loved ones have been replaced with gift cards and a “happy holiday” click of the finger.   This is the result of continually living in the fast lane.  No time to think, no time to reflect on what we are missing.

At some point, we are likely to wake up, look around and wonder what happened. We realize that living in the fast lane has left us pretty unhappy, stressed out anxious most of the time.

Hopefully it won’t be too late to make those changes.  We may be up there in our gilded cages pondering the life that never was. We may regret the time we never spent developing a relationship with our children or the failed relationships that required our time and energy. Ultimately, these are the values we are passing onto our children and future generations.  

So What’s to Do?

Time to wake up, get out of the fast lane and start to smell the roses,  before it’s too late.  It’s time to sit down and think about what is really important in life. Try to get things into perspective.  How can you achieve a more balanced life.  

The demands are real but there are moments when it becomes clear that we need to slow down and really experience the journey.  Rushing has become a habit that we need to break.  Tell yourself that it is not possible to do everything. As soon as you complete one task, another one will pop up.   Make a daily list of things that are important and meaningful to you and that you must make time for.  If you find yourself rushing along, pull out the list and remind yourself of them.

Pay attention to the way you walk and talk.   Are you forever racing along? Make a conscious effort to slow down the pace.   There is always more time than you think.

Remind yourself constantly that life is all about the journey.  Don’t get caught up in the end product as you will miss all the details.  Driving fast will get you quickly to your destination but you will miss the scenery on the way.   Being overly involved in providing the basic needs of your children will prevent you from enjoying them as they are growing up.

It is time to reinvent yourself. Re-establish your priorities and those things that were once important to you.  It is time to get out of the fast lane. There is much more to life than the speed at which you can do things.