The Slow Thinking Movement is about taking time to talk with others about the things that are important rather than the things that are urgent.
It is about finding a slice of time (several hours at least) when you get together with others, bring ideas to talk about, and then spend time thinking and talking together. And it helps if you combine all that with a slow meal – the traditional context for shared talk….
There is no plan to implement anything, or develop a plan, or take an initiative, or save the planet. The thinking and talking and exploring ideas is the reason for the gathering….
Of course, often in a slow world this may happen anyway. But for those of us who still need to be intentional about slowing down, it is good to make a deliberate choice to step away from the immediate demands to ‘do’ things, and create a time devoted only to thinking – slowly and with others.
What has worked for us is an invitation to a diverse group of people – inviting them to bring an idea or issue they would like to discuss and to share a meal. We remind people this is about exploring ideas, not convincing others to think as they do. We ask each person to take 2 minutes to introduce the topic they bring, and then simply start talking as we pass the food…
The official url for the movement is http://www.slowthinking.org.nz – which at the moment simply redirects you to here. You may also like to follow the discussions on the blog pages.
Enjoy! And let us know what helps make slow thinking work for you.
Following my 3.5 yr-old’s lead. She seems to know how to enjoy the things around her by using her legos as pretend food and serving me “sandwiches”. It makes me take time to really observe my surroundings, especially my beautiful yard. It helps me harness the moment, think about how I can simply enjoy what I have now, and not lust for something more. My slow thinking formula: Breathe, observe, and enjoy. Repeat.
Yes! My 2 year old teaching me the value of always moving but never rushing, as one commenter put on my site when I talked about enjoying NYC more now than I ever did as a single person when I was in too much of a hurry, always running to the next big thing.