 Slow living for me allows me to connect back to the present moment, be with myself in the now and not be so distracted by thoughts of the future like what am I going to cook for dinner or what video or blog post should I create next. Being on my own often means I'm usually in my head a lot, consumed by my thoughts of what's next, so I've been working on mindfulness techniques and bringing my mind back to the present, focusing on the tasks I'm completing in the moment and not worrying so much about the future as it hasn't happened yet. I started to notice that when I would project myself into the future or try and edit my past it gave me a sense or an illusion really of control. I could fabricate a scenario in my mind or edit my own version of the past so it worked out how I wanted it to be and this provided a sense of comfort from the unpredictability of life. But this imaginary world was interfering with my reality. My thoughts had become a kind of wall standing in between me and the present moment and I needed to find a way to reconnect back with myself in the present and break down this barrier preventing me from living wholeheartedly in the now. This is one of the reasons why I wanted to adapt a more slow living minimalist lifestyle. I wanted to remove physical and mental clutter from my life that was distracting me from life right now. I wanted to start fully participating in my life and no longer watching it pass me by without actively living in it. Living in the moment sounds easy enough but when it comes to putting it into practice it starts to become very challenging. We as a culture pride ourselves on multitasking and filling our schedules with things to give the illusion of productivity. We've created infinite ways to distract ourselves from being present in the now and have become so disconnected without even realizing it. I was an example of this. My focus seemed to be everywhere else but here. I wanted to live in the now to live consciously. To fully experience myself and my surroundings without getting caught up in my head. Giving so much focus to the constant stream of thoughts circling around my mind. I started slowing down. I began giving myself less and less to do each day and made it a rule to only give myself three things to do in a day and if I completed those quickly that was okay. I had the rest of the day to relax and do things I enjoyed like go to the beach, go for a walk, read or just sit out in the sun. It was really challenging at first because I felt I was wasting my time by not doing things I thought were productive but I stuck to my rule and it slowly became easier and I felt my whole life started to shift. My life no longer revolved around my work and I was able to do other things that I really enjoyed. When I was doing a task, going for a walk or even just relaxing at the beach, I made sure to stay present and give it my full attention. I wanted to take in the beauty and savour the moment as much as possible. Feeling grateful for what was in my life and not being so caught up on the next thing. Contrary to how it sounds, letting go of control gives us actual control. When we're fully connected to the present, we become aware of when to act and when not to act. Living more slowly has taught me to let go of the things I cannot control and give focus to the things I can. I find my days aren't so full speed ahead and I can enjoy the things I make time for now which has given more richness to life. I'm realising how our egos, stubbornness, need for control can get in the way of actually living our lives and appreciating life for what it is. I think this all begins with intentionality, catching ourselves when our minds start to drift away. We can always bring our attention back to the present to where we are right now and appreciate the little things like the sun shining on our skin, the delicious food we're about to eat, the people who are in our company and so much more. I find it's about celebrating the small moments as these are often the ones that give meaning and shape our lives. Thank you so much for watching this video. I really hope you enjoyed it. I'm sending you so much love and I hope to see you soon again.