We get so caught up in the hustle and bustle of work, caring for our families, socializing, running errands that sometimes we don’t even know if we’re actually enjoying our lives.
We often pride ourselves on the ability to multitask and be super-efficient but, at the end of the day, how much of that really matters?
Slow living takes a single task approach encouraging you to stay present while only doing one thing.
It encourages you to take time out to stop and savor your coffee or tea in the morning, just enjoying it, while doing nothing else.
Slow living helps you see and appreciate the little things, which too often are taken for granted. It allows you to feel more connected to yourself and the world that surrounds you.
In this list, we’re giving you 20 quotes about slow living that will hopefully guide you in understanding the meaning of slow living and inspire you to also stop and smell the roses.
1. “Since time is the one immaterial object which we cannot influence neither speed up nor slow down add to nor diminish it is an imponderably valuable gift.” ―Maya Angelou
2. “You’re only here for a short visit. Don’t hurry, don’t worry. And be sure to smell the flowers along the way.” ― Walter Hagen
3. “Slow down and enjoy life. It’s not only the scenery you miss by going too fast – you also miss the sense of where you are going and why.”―Eddie Cantor
4. “Nature does not hurry, yet everything is accomplished.” ―Lao Tzu
5. “A quiet and modest life brings more joy than a pursuit of success bound with constant unrest.” ―Albert Einstein
6. “It always pays to dwell slowly on the beautiful things – the more beautiful the more slowly.” ―Atticus
7. “Give me a quiet life, give me trees, the wind through them, give me a sea and the song it sings. Give me heartbeats shared with those I love, give me peace and a long deep sleep.” ―Tyler Knott Gregson
8. “It was sunsets that taught me that beauty sometimes only lasts for couple of moments, and it was sunrises that showed me that all it takes is patience to experience it all over again.” ―A.J. Lawless
9. “The slow philosophy can be summed up in a single word: balance. Be fast when it makes sense to be fast and be slow when slowness is called for. Seek to live at what musicians call the tempo giusto – the right speed” ―Carl Honore
10. “Most people’s minds are almost always too busy for them to feel their skin being caressed by the wind or the sun.” ― Mokokoma Mokhonoana
11. “The best thing you can do to deal with these high-speed times is to slow down, inwardly, to take a little more time for meditation, a little more time to enjoy your morning cup of coffee or tea, and to look around at the people in your life with a little more love” ― Frederick Lenz
12. “Slowing down does not indicate that you are giving up. It simply means that your soul is seeking some well-earned recharge.” ― Christine Szymanski
13. “People are so busy chasing happiness – if they would slow down and turn around, they would give it a chance to catch up with them.” ―Harold S.Kushner
14. “Adopt the pace of nature. Her secret is patience.” ―Ralph Waldo Emerson
15. “Cherish your solitude. Take trains by yourself to places you have never been. Sleep out alone under the stars. Learn how to drive a stick shift. Go so far away that you stop being afraid of not coming back. Say no when you don’t want to do something. Say yes if your instincts are strong, even if everyone around you disagrees. Decide whether you want to be liked or admired. Decide if fitting in is more important than finding out what you’re doing here.” ― Eve Ensler
16. “My new deliberate and slower pace has created a higher quality in my experiences.”
― Lisa J. Shultz
17. “Smile, breathe and go slowly.” — Thich Nhat Hanh
18. “Being Slow means that you control the rhythms of your own life. You decide how fast you have to go in any given context. If today I want to go fast, I go fast; if tomorrow I want to go slow, I go slow. What we are fighting for is the right to determine our own tempos.” — Carlo Petrini
19. “Slow living is about intention, spending more time on things that are important and less on things that aren’t.” — Brooke McAlary
20. “Sometimes sitting and doing nothing is the best something you can do.” — Karen Salmansohn
And there you have 20 of the best quotes about slow living! These wise words teach us the importance of slow living and how it can lead to a more intentional and fulfilled life.
Being able to connect to each moment, to the nature that surrounds you and being present when spending time with loved ones will enrich your life in ways that material things never could.