How to run a slow living business

On peace, joy & purpose: how I want to run my business as a mama, life coach, writer & slow living lover

Last night I sat down with my giant journal and crappy biro and simply wrote, ‘I want…’

I want to collaborate

I want to have other people be part of my business

I want to run workshops under my business name, Savour the Slow and…

I want to run workshops for other aligned businesses

I want to work locally

I want to give back

I want to be abundant in money and service and giving and time

I want to always experiment with my creativity

I want to show up only when it feels right

I want to connect

I want to build community - online & in person

I want to build a lasting, flexible business

I want to feel excited and free and joyful

I want to do things my own way, do things differently, question everything

I want to only add value - not add to the noise

I want to be intentional

I want to stop being scared

I want to be me.

And

I want to be fully present with my family

I want to volunteer with kids

I want to buy beautiful things from beautiful businesses

I want to tend a garden & create a home full of colour, play and laughter

I want to feel lighter

I want to let go

I want to have savings and a pension and never have to worry about money again

I want to move my body and experience everything I can do with it

I want to be in a healthy, joyful body

I want to read ~ write ~ take photos ~ craft

I want to live offline, not online

I want to always be curious

I want peace

Is this my manifesto for slow living?

Maybe!

The key thing for me is (and something I want to pivot my business towards): intention and intuition.

I’ve tried the quarterly and monthly and daily goal setting…it lasts less than a week before I seek distraction (according to Gretchin Rubin’s Four Tendencies, I’m a Rebel which basically means I don’t like being told what to do - by others or myself. It’s a right fucker quite honestly). This is why intention is the way ahead for me. If I have a clear picture of where I’m heading, how I want to feel and an idea of how I may want to do it, that’s enough for me. I’ve ridden enough waves over the past decade from peak energy to peak anxiety to know that I simply can’t commit to a specific plan or schedule. And that’s okay. I’m pretty sure we’re all like that really & it’s just the bloody patriarchy making it seem life is as simple as a grand plan that you never deviate from, however you feel, whatever is going on. BULLSHIT.

Anyhoo. The intuition part of this is, I know, often the hardest bit for others. I’ve had so many conversations with clients and friends alike asking what exactly is their intuition and how can they access it? I think I’m lucky because I’ve always been able to access mine easily, way before I had a name for it. I’d simply ask myself a ‘yes or no’ question and see which one felt right in my body. One answer makes my stomach sink, the other makes me feel calm and simultaneously excited. Or I wait to see whether a ‘yes’ or ‘no’ jumps into my mind. It’s pretty cool & really helps me know when something is or isn’t for me. So, I’m going to continue as I always have when making decisions about the future of my business and the work I do - talk to my intuition (she’s always right).

I hope that by keeping in mind these things my purpose here on this blog, this business, this planet will continue to pave the way ahead for me. I don’t fully know where it’s going to take me and I love that. I also know that doing it slowly is the only way.

I read a magazine article today where someone shared a lesson from life in their camper van: ‘We learned that peace, joy and purpose were possible in any place or season - big house or small.’ Those three words really jumped out at me and brought stillness to my soul.

Peace ~ Joy ~ Purpose

I hope you’ll join me as I build my life around these pillars.