We live in the era of convenience. For the end consumer. Not necessarily the service provider and their crew. In a world, where customers have indeed become supreme, service providers are scrambling to improve two things in order to stay ahead. Costs and CX (customer experience). Speed is a major part of an enhanced CX. Many years ago, Domino’s famously ran the ‘30 mins or free’ campaign. It had a jingle to go with it ‘ta ra ra ra ra ree, oh pizza aaye free!’ Boy! Were we impressed? How naive we all were. Today, Zepto offers delivery of anything, including pizza in 1/3rd that time.
The rise of 10 minute delivery apps have spoiled customers silly – giving rise to what we call quick commerce. Parallel to this there is the concept of fast. Fast food and fast fashions. If we shift the lens to the end consumers – running all day, stuck in traffic, catching the metro or local trains bursting at the seams, only to reach a work-place that expects them to toil, ignoring personal mental and physical health and compromising on personal relationships – what would strike us is that the one thing they don’t have is time. A miniscule percentage has at least money but a majority have no time and they have no money. This perspective makes one think they deserve all the convenience for the best prices in the world. Or the thrill of fast fashions and fast foods.
Zoom out. What do you see? We see hurry. A hurry to reach the office. Hurry to get back home. Hurry to make it to the movie on time. Hurry ro deliver in 10 mins. Everyone is running, rushing or cursing traffic that is delaying them. For a few who can afford to be Zen, this becomes the time to pause. Listen to podcasts or audiobooks. Not for long though. Only till the traffic clears or till they are back at office or at home, where they take office calls from.
No wonder then that the biggest luxury today has become to be able to take things slow. Slow cooked. Slow love. Slow walks in the park. Of course no one can afford this and so a new trend is on the rise – the art of slow living. Slow is seen as crucial to balance out the rush – for better health and wellness.
Slow is also better for the planet, generating less disposable plastic and packaging. The stillness of slow living makes one look inwards, pay attention to the gut and sleep patterns and overall health. Not that this is new knowledge. What is new is that for the first time the common man can consider a lifestyle that allows for this. In the new digitally transformed world, there is room to make a living in your own time. A lot of the labour can be delegated to AI. Sure, mindless corporate profit mongers may see this as an opportunity to double the output expectation from their employees. However, people in turn have the choice to not be employed at such places, or be self-employed – half their labour while keeping the output same and making the same amount of money,
The idea of Slow Living has existed since the 80s but was seen to be an obscene choice only the rich or utterly uncaring could afford. Today, this is changing. The transformation in the way people work and live is being fuelled by technological and digital advancement – making it possible for just about anyone to consciously choose a SLOW lifestyle. The backronym of SLOW reveals words which are fast gaining popularity in these times. Sustainable, Local, Organic, Whole (not processed).
Fast and quick is thrilling but also draining and chaotic. Sometimes we want that. Slow, however, is sustainable and controlled. Slowness is what comes from wisdom and maturity and perhaps mainstream society is ready for it, today. What we may see unfolding is a yin yang like ‘Quick-Slow’ era.
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