In a world where the whir of the content machine never ceases, where every scroll brings a new wave of information crashing over us, I have to ask: when did we start equating the rapidity of our lives with the richness of our experiences?
I was recently laid off from my job and my mind has been wandering in ways that I have never experienced (which is saying a lot considering my mind literally never shuts off and keeps me up late and wakes me up early on most days). I find myself caught in the relentless current of the TikTok era, where the pace at which we consume, create, and live seems to only accelerate, leaving in its wake a trail of exhaustion and unfulfilled desires for something more profound, more meaningful, and for more and more of us…burnout.
It’s strange, isn’t it? This incessant push towards faster, more instantaneous content, as if the speed of its delivery could somehow enhance its value to us. Yet, in this rush, we seem to have misplaced the art of savoring, of lingering on a thought, a moment, or a piece of content long enough to let it truly resonate within us. It’s as if we are all at the same feast with our friends and family, yet we are all so hurried to taste everything that we end up remembering none of the flavors.
I haven’t come to this thought from a fear of change, it has always been a part of my life. I went to 13 schools in my k-12 education (yet, somehow all 4 years at the same high school). I swore off moving at all in my early teens, only to have found in my twenties, that my career in the sneaker business would take me from California to Texas to New York to Colorado to Detroit and back to California again. The digital era has undeniably given us gifts of connectivity and creativity that past generations could barely dream of, and I am fully aware that I am one of the biggest beneficiaries of growing up in that era. However, this very gift seems to have trapped us in a paradox of plenty: the more we have, the less we can appreciate what’s before us.
The bombardment of likes, shares, and fleeting trends, has left me wondering where the creators and consumers who participate daily in creating this giant storm go from here. How do we find our footing when the ground beneath us shifts faster than we can adapt? How do we explain those shifts to coworkers, colleagues, family, and friends? It’s a question that reminds me of a line from one of my favorite songs that has recently been given a second life, “Fast Car” by Tracy Chapman. The melody, a haunting ode to the longing for escape and the search for a meaningful existence, echoes my current sentiment like it did when I was just a kid wanting to stay in the same school for more than a year: the need to slow down, to find space where my thoughts can come to their potential at their own pace, unpressured by the ticking clock of content timelines.
Maybe the answer is not in rejecting the digital age and its innovations but in redefining our relationship with it. I have come to believe that the quality of what we consume and create should not be sacrificed at the altar of speed (a hard truth for someone like myself who has an unhealthy obsession with cars and a bucket list of ideas that is a mile-long). There’s a big difference between being prolific and being profound. This distinction is crucial, especially for those of us who pour our souls into our creations, hoping to ignite a spark, provoke a thought, or move a heart through our storytelling. How does anyone accomplish any of those things if we are all constantly being pushed to the next project, the next post, the next fleeting moment of internet fame?
I think it’s time for me to become more intentional.
In the same way that mindfulness teaches us to be present in the moment, I think we can apply that same approach to our digital interactions. It will take me some serious effort to do so but I want to choose to engage with material that enriches, inspires, or challenges me. I want to create content that I am genuinely passionate about, rather than being forced into thinking, ‘will it perform well?’ Maybe if you read this, you’ll choose to do the same and we can reclaim our agency in a sea of algorithms.
To truly see this idea through, my intentions alone won’t be enough. I hope that my actions moving forward will connect me with like-minded people who are also looking for deeper meaning, for content that doesn’t just flash before our eyes but lingers in our minds, sparking conversations, and uses the vastness of content and social media to connect us with a community we don’t know exists. I want to create and seek out spaces where slowing down is not seen as a lack of productivity but as a commitment to quality, authenticity, and the kind of creativity that can only flourish under the gentle care of time.
The irony is not lost on me that I am writing these things on a blog on the internet. Yet, maybe that’s exactly the point. The digital world that has been used as an enemy against the people is not actually our adversary but a tool, a canvas, a stage upon which we can choose to perform the acts that resonate most with our authentic selves. I truly believe that amidst the blaring distractions of the content machine, our voices can still carry weight, we can still find ears willing to listen, hearts willing to feel, and minds open to engaging with ideas that meander rather than rush.
As I wrap this up, I keep thinking of a quote from the late Mister Rogers: “I feel so strongly that deep and simple is far more essential than shallow and complex.” As a kid, I would have never thought he’d be someone I would regularly quote but here we are, again. And in a way, his words capture exactly what I am feeling right now, seeking solace in slowness, to find depth in a world obsessed with surface-level interactions.
So, to those of you who read this far, I appreciate you. Thank you for accepting my invitation to slow down. You’ve successfully stepped out of the whirlwind that is the current content machine, to find something different. Remember, the value of our digital footprint lies not in its speed, but in its ability to touch lives, evoke thought, and spark joy. Let’s do this together more often and let’s share the content and creatives that help us find inspiration and fulfillment in the chaos of the current times.
If you enjoyed this, feel free to buy me a coffee.