Presence Over Performance
What if the real freedom was found in being ourselves?
It feels as if we live in a world that glorifies rushing, competing and perfection.
Quick fixes, instant results, the constant hum of “more, more, more.”
We are endlessly nudged to consume - watch another video, view another advert, buy another must-have, here’s yet another reminder that our homes, our clothes, even our lives should look more “Instagram worthy.”
These days it feels inadequate to just have a relatively clean-ish lived in home.
It sometimes feels as though everything I see is about speeding up and making (or spending) money. Reels, images and captions churned out by AI at a dozen a minute, affiliate links accompanying every “I recommend this….” post, and comment bots intruding upon every conversation.
If everything is sped up, automated, and polished until it gleams, is anything still genuine, heartfelt, authentic and real?
Slowing down and simply being yourself feels almost like a quiet act of rebellion.
Choosing to just live, and not to perform.
To tend to what is real, and not what looks good on a feed.
But this asks something of us.
It asks us to turn away from the noise and to sit in the quiet.
To be different.
It asks us to trust that our worth isn’t measured in output, perfection, or applause.
And to risk looking unproductive, unmotivated, lazy or crazy, whilst we take the time to listen to the birds, stare at the raindrops on a woven web, or stop to speak quietly to a wandering snail.
Slowing down and taking notice isn’t a weakness.
And it sure isn’t laziness.
It is presence. It is honesty. It is courage.
It is treasuring each and every moment we are blessed with.
For me, it shows up in small, ordinary ways:
Listening to the rhythm of the goats contented chewing.
Stopping in the lane to watch mist drift over distant hills.
Taking time to knead bread dough slowly, and feel the nourishment that moment offers instead of rushing through my to-do list.
These moments won’t go viral. They aren’t staged for audience or applause.
But they don’t need to get clicks or please an algorithm because real life doesn’t have to be measured in views and likes.
Instead let’s make real, valuable, kindred connections that lead to far more than a click and a view.
Let’s show up for those we love and connect with our hearts, be our true selves, show our bare souls, and share our own stories - not those that an AI system suggests.
Those connections born from authenticity - a kind word, a shared smile, a raw experience told in truth - will always matter more and go deeper than just chasing numbers.
Perhaps that is the most courageous thing any of us can do. To choose presence over performance, connection over numbers, and to move softly and live gently in a world that tells us to rush.
Our time here is precious and each moment matters. Not those that are staged for applause, but the genuine, imperfect, uncurated ones that cannot be rushed or bought.
Perhaps that is the invitation we now need.
Not to keep up, not to prove, not to perform.
But to simply breathe, to notice, to connect and to belong.
Maybe that is the way to finally find the freedom we’ve been chasing all along.