Whanganui Chronicle
  • Whanganui Chronicle home
  • Latest news
  • Sport
  • Business
  • Opinion
  • Lifestyle
  • Property
  • Death notices
  • Classifieds

Subscriptions

  • Herald Premium
  • Viva Premium
  • The Listener
  • BusinessDesk

Sections

  • Latest news
  • On The Up
  • Sport
  • Business
  • Opinion
  • Lifestyle
  • Property
    • All Property
    • Residential property listings
  • Rural
    • All Rural
    • Dairy farming
    • Sheep & beef farming
    • Horticulture
    • Animal health
    • Rural business
    • Rural life
    • Rural technology

Locations

  • Taranaki
  • National Park
  • Whakapapa
  • Ohakune
  • Raetihi
  • Taihape
  • Marton
  • Feilding
  • Palmerston North

Media

  • Video
  • Photo galleries
  • Today's Paper - E-Editions
  • Photo sales
  • Classifieds

Weather

  • New Plymouth
  • Whanganui
  • Palmertson North
  • Levin

NZME Network

  • Advertise with NZME
  • OneRoof
  • Driven Car Guide
  • BusinessDesk
  • Newstalk ZB
  • Sunlive
  • ZM
  • The Hits
  • Coast
  • Radio Hauraki
  • The Alternative Commentary Collective
  • Gold
  • Flava
  • iHeart Radio
  • Hokonui
  • Radio Wanaka
  • iHeartCountry New Zealand
  • Restaurant Hub
  • NZME Events

SubscribeSign In
Advertisement
Advertise with NZME.
Home / Whanganui Chronicle

Slow down? Easier said than done

By Nicola Young
Whanganui Chronicle·
16 May, 2014 08:24 PM4 mins to read

Subscribe to listen

Access to Herald Premium articles require a Premium subscription. Subscribe now to listen.
Already a subscriber?  Sign in here

Listening to articles is free for open-access content—explore other articles or learn more about text-to-speech.
‌
Save

    Share this article

Nicola Young  Photo/File
Nicola Young Photo/File

Nicola Young Photo/File

I've been rallying against people rallying against the "glorification of being busy".

That's because I like being busy. I see it as an asset, a strength, something I can put to work for me ... something that has helped me take advantage of my opportunities in life.

But guess what? I've been overdoing it. Yep, turns out all those times my mother has said "Slow down, don't overdo it", she was on to something.

It's only taken a wee computer meltdown to help me realise that I wasn't leaving any space for the flat tyres of life.

It feels harder to slow down, though, when you love what you do - I have a fantastic job and am lucky to be supported in working part-time from home.

Advertisement
Advertise with NZME.
Advertisement
Advertise with NZME.

I love my volunteering with the Green Party - it's been a joy discovering the smart, caring and passionate Kiwis involved - so I've happily thrown myself in boots and all.

Combining my news junkie tendencies with political engagement has felt like I'm uncovering my addiction gene. When it's all for a good cause, it fuels the justification in running from one thing to the next.

Then writing this column - I am amazed to have this opportunity to thrust my opinions on you, even if it's another couple of hours a week at the computer.

Advertisement
Advertise with NZME.

And my children ... yes, turns out I have two divine boys who soak up a bit of time and energy, too. Even though they are as exhausting as they are entertaining, I really do love my time with them. Oh ... and my hard-working husband, he's in the mix somewhere.

So what do I give up? Where do I cut back? How do I stop being too busy to work out how to stop being too busy?

It was when my computer decided to lock me out last week, and I realised I just did not have time for this enforced go-slow, it hit me that it was time for change.

That's why I'm writing this somewhat self-indulgent piece about slowing down, hoping it will focus my commitment to no longer stuffing every moment with something.

My much-loved iPhone is part of the problem. I fell into the habit of using it all hours a couple of years ago when breastfeeding my youngest in the middle of the night. I'd read news online and catch up on Facebook posts from friends in different time zones to help stay awake.

Now I've discovered Twitter. I enjoy the instant gratification of Twitter - it's like mainlining news and political commentary. So practising self-control with my smartphone obsession is up the top of the list.

I know raising children while maintaining a career is not easy but I am grateful for this "problem" of having a satisfying job and being connected to my community.

If anyone relating to this is waiting for me to offer advice about how I'm fixing it, sorry to disappoint - it's a work in progress. As a start, I am self-prescribing more walking the dog on the beach, reading to the kids, decent sleep and unwinding with American Idol on TV.

Let's get real, though, I am one of the lucky ones. Many people turn up to work each day for financial survival but still only scrape by. Many have sick children or elderly parents to care for, or their own health challenges; and many are mums trying to do it all - have it all - without a supportive partner alongside.

Best-seller In Praise Of Slow by Carl Honore was recommended to me this week. It is about the intensifying speed we bring to everything in the 21st century, but opens with a quote from 1907 by William Dean Howells: "People are born and married, and live and die, in the midst of an uproar so frantic that you would think they would go mad of it."

Advertisement
Advertise with NZME.

So this isn't new but, as Honore says: "When you accelerate things that should not be accelerated, when you forget how to slow down, there is a price to pay."

It might not be easy, but I'm going to slow down.

Nicola Young is a former Department of Conservation manager who now works for global consultancy AECOM. Educated at Wanganui Girls' College, she has a science degree and is the mother of two boys.

Save

    Share this article

Latest from Whanganui Chronicle

Whanganui Chronicle

RSA 'alive and well' despite premises closure

11 Jul 06:00 PM
Whanganui Chronicle

‘Everyone went silent’: Whanganui Youth MP speaks in Parliament

11 Jul 05:00 PM
Opinion

Shelley Loader: How we can all get a share of the apples

11 Jul 05:00 PM

From early mornings to easy living

sponsored
Advertisement
Advertise with NZME.
Recommended for you
Insulation rule changes could cut $15k from new build costs
Northern Advocate

Insulation rule changes could cut $15k from new build costs

13 Jul 04:00 AM
Warriors v Tigers live updates: Warriors eye return to form
Warriors

Warriors v Tigers live updates: Warriors eye return to form

13 Jul 03:45 AM
Trump defends officials amid backlash over Epstein file investigation
World

Trump defends officials amid backlash over Epstein file investigation

13 Jul 03:44 AM
Warriors Women defeat Eels to claim first NRLW win in over four years
Warriors

Warriors Women defeat Eels to claim first NRLW win in over four years

13 Jul 03:20 AM
Afternoon quiz: Where was King Philip's War fought?
New Zealand

Afternoon quiz: Where was King Philip's War fought?

13 Jul 03:00 AM

Latest from Whanganui Chronicle

RSA 'alive and well' despite premises closure

RSA 'alive and well' despite premises closure

11 Jul 06:00 PM

Former members are 'more than welcome' to return, RSA Welfare Trust president says.

‘Everyone went silent’: Whanganui Youth MP speaks in Parliament

‘Everyone went silent’: Whanganui Youth MP speaks in Parliament

11 Jul 05:00 PM
Major Joanna Margaret Paul exhibition opens

Major Joanna Margaret Paul exhibition opens

11 Jul 05:00 PM
Shelley Loader: How we can all get a share of the apples

Shelley Loader: How we can all get a share of the apples

11 Jul 05:00 PM
Solar bat monitors uncover secrets of Auckland’s night sky
sponsored

Solar bat monitors uncover secrets of Auckland’s night sky

NZ Herald
  • About NZ Herald
  • Meet the journalists
  • Newsletters
  • Classifieds
  • Help & support
  • Contact us
  • House rules
  • Privacy Policy
  • Terms of use
  • Competition terms & conditions
  • Our use of AI
Subscriber Services
  • Whanganui Chronicle e-edition
  • Manage your print subscription
  • Manage your digital subscription
  • Subscribe to Herald Premium
  • Subscribe to the Whanganui Chronicle
  • Gift a subscription
  • Subscriber FAQs
  • Subscription terms & conditions
  • Promotions and subscriber benefits
NZME Network
  • Whanganui Chronicle
  • The New Zealand Herald
  • The Northland Age
  • The Northern Advocate
  • Waikato Herald
  • Bay of Plenty Times
  • Rotorua Daily Post
  • Hawke's Bay Today
  • Viva
  • NZ Listener
  • Newstalk ZB
  • BusinessDesk
  • OneRoof
  • Driven Car Guide
  • iHeart Radio
  • Restaurant Hub
NZME
  • NZME Events
  • About NZME
  • NZME careers
  • Advertise with NZME
  • Digital self-service advertising
  • Book your classified ad
  • Photo sales
  • © Copyright 2025 NZME Publishing Limited
TOP
search by queryly Advanced Search