It’s become pretty popular, almost trendy, for people to choose a word at the beginning of the year and make the word the focus or underpinning of their most important objectives.

My friends Chris Brogan and Ryan Holiday have done this and written about it for years.

I’ve been practicing informally for a few years, so today, I’m letting the world know that my word for 2024 is – Slow.

In a world where the pace of life, change, and business accelerates yearly, adopting the theme of ‘slow’ for the year might seem counter. Yet, I think that it’s precisely this shift in mindset that can lead me to discover more profound, impactful results in my personal and entrepreneurial endeavors. See, the idea isn’t to do less but to be more present and intentional in everything I do.

Slowing Down in Everyday Life

The word mindfulness is tossed around so much that it’s become passe because everyone gets it and agrees with the notion, but dang, is it tough to do.

My daily routines are often a blur of activities, with little time for reflection or appreciation. Slowing down means taking the time to actually taste my morning coffee, really listening to the birds chirping outside my window, and feeling the texture of the paper as I journal in the morning. It’s the stupid stuff: chew your food, stop talking so much, hike slowly, and listen. We all talk about gratitude being the secret weapon, but it’s not just about saying thank you for what went well today – slow cultivates gratitude in, well, everything.

Quality Over Quantity

I hope my ‘slow’ role will open up deeper connections in relationships. Foster more meaningful conversations rather than brief exchanges. Maybe the phone has no place in slow intention. Can a slow Zoom mentality allow me to focus entirely on the person speaking, understanding their perspective fully?

Strategic and Thoughtful Actions

For the entrepreneurial me, ‘slow’ doesn’t mean less progress; rather, it’s about strategic and thoughtful action. Do less but do it better, more focused. Something like the difference between a well-researched, personalized pitch and a generic, mass email blast.

The ‘Slow’ Day

One way I plan to implement this is to designate one day each week as a ‘slow’ day. I’ve been doing this for a few years from a strategic planning viewpoint but not so much from a personal development view. On this day, I will consciously remove the rush. Initiate practices that are all about mindful awareness. Schedule no meetings, but build a few relationships. Spend longer on tasks, appreciating the process. My slow days will allow my fast days to feel far more productive.

I guess I share all of this because, for some, it might resonate; for others, I hope you’ll see it as an invitation to hold me accountable in ways that matter.