Slowing Down to Speed Up

I saw this meme recently in my jewelers' community and, although I immediately laughed, it also struck a nerve.

Making jewelry by hand is a labor of love — multiple tedious steps, hands covered in cuts and bruises, wildly volatile metal markets, back problems. And that's before you even get to running the business.

Although highly fulfilling, it's an enormous amount of work and can be super overwhelming.

And when does it get really exhausting? When your business isn't where you expect it to be.

In those times, it's easy to fall into the trap of thinking you need to do more.

I see this with my coaching clients too. Back-to-back days leading to late nights trying to get it all done. Then coming home to raise kids and keep your house from total chaos. All in the name of being "enough" as a business owner, executive, or parent.

This drive to excel brings this perceived need to work harder. Over-perform. "Hustle" as a way of life.

But humans aren't machines. I know this. Yet, as a relative newcomer in the jewelry world, it's easy for me to fall into the "doing" trap.

When I push myself too hard — that's when mistakes happen. That's when I have to do it over and over and over until I get it right.

Which pushes me to work even harder.

Which results in more mistakes and do-overs.

It's a vicious cycle.

Which is why I'm constantly working on actively resting. Slowing down to speed up.

Reminding myself that I don't always need to do "more." That what needs to be done will get done.

So I've been testing something out: What would it look like if I didn't work so hard?

The work still has to be done. But if I get curious and ask myself some critical questions, I can figure out a smarter, less stressful way to do it.

Questions like:

• What's most important for me to do right now?
• Who else could do this for me?
• What steps can I eliminate or compress?
• Do I really need to do this? Or am I just forcing it on myself to be "better"?
• Am I being a perfectionist here?

And when I notice I'm pushing myself hard, when my eyes feel strained, my body is sore, and I'd rather be doing something else...I take a break.

Here's what I'm learning: The work always gets done.

Next time you notice yourself spinning out in overwhelm, get curious. Ask yourself some of these questions and see what comes up.

Try taking a rest. Even a short one. Walking away really is a time-generating activity. You'll return feeling refreshed, energized, and ready to tackle the next task.

You'll do it faster and with fewer errors.

And even more importantly, you'll give yourself space to enjoy your one wild and precious life.

Which leads to more inspiration. More space. More fun. More joy.

Everything feels better. And that's when you'll naturally do better.