Congratulations! You’ve decided to take it slow today. You slept in, did your routine, and had a nice breakfast. It’s 11 AM when you leave the house for work, and that is okay.
But then the bus driver needs to take a detour. The lady at the café takes some time to toast your tuna melt. And the office barista needs five minutes to get more milk. Slowly but surely, your graciousness makes way for anxiety, and before you know it… “Come on man! Move faster! What’s taking so long? I’m already behind!”
It’s easy to be generous when you can plan for it. Once you’ve decided that the day will be a slow one, moving slowly becomes the norm. But what about other people? What if they, too, need some extra time? Just because you can’t add it to your calendar does not mean those folks deserve your graciousness any less than you do.
It’s a great achievement to be nice to yourself, but if you want inner peace in full bloom, you can’t let the niceness end where your nose does. Unless you extend the same courtesy you afford yourself to others, you’ll quickly lose what you have gained. If you’re going to be kind, go all the way.