The first two months of the year went by in a blur. I don’t remember much of what I’ve done. I can’t tell you to what places I’ve been, my amazing birthday trip being the one exception. I spent some time sick, much time working, and almost all of it looking at screens — but it all went by so quickly! How?
The answer is awareness. Or rather, a lack of it. The more I allow my brain to frantically plow through vast seas of information, the way it likes to do, the less present I am — and the faster time seems to go by. But when I take frequent breaks, sit and think before I act, and approach each task or activity with intention, I never feel in a rush. Yet, ironically, I get more done.
You can do the same work in four undistracted hours that you can do in eight while constantly multitasking, but you’ll feel much better after the former than after the latter. You’ll remember where your time went and why, and you’ll have actually experienced its passage. This is self-awareness the habit, the practice, the cognitive state. The more you master it, the less your brain will pull you inadvertently into the future.
We cannot fast-forward the clock, but awareness still determines the perceived speed at which we are going. You only have one life. Make sure you’re there to live it.