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Hi, I’m Kyle—the human behind Sloww. I found and created my life purpose after an existential crisis. Here’s a little about my journey to date.
The “Old” Me: As recently as a few years ago, I lived the life of “workism” and “total work.” You would have found the old me working consistent 60-80 hour workweeks in marketing and advertising, consumed by busyness, and trying to offset my hard work by telling myself “I deserve this” while upgrading my lifestyle—buying a sports car and McMansion in the suburbs (aka “lifestyle inflation“). Life was heavy—one thing after another that I had to do. Externally focused. Lacking purpose. Superficial. Complicated. Reactive. Unconscious and spiritually poor.
The “New” Me: In 2018, I became a “corporate dropout” and quit my 9-to-5 job—and essentially my decade-long career. I’ve been downshifting to simple and slow living while upshifting life purpose and meaning. In 2019, we sold the house! (and the car will be out of here when we get around to it). Sloww has become a record of what I learn on my journey, refined notes to self, my life and my living. Life is now lighter—one thing after another that I get to do. Internally focused. Purposeful. Deeper. Simpler. Intentional. More conscious and spiritually rich—or, at least on the path of spiritual growth.
What? Why? How? Let’s back up a bit.
In November 2015, I had an existential crisis. The crazy hours at work finally broke me for the first (and last) time. This is when the questions started. I questioned everything—everything I’d ever known, believed in, and thought was true. The acute portion of my crisis lasted six weeks—I started to give myself a deep, self-taught, crash course on life.
Yet, I struggled every single day with the new information I was learning (awareness) vs. how I was still living (action)—causing a high level of cognitive dissonance. I felt like I had a foot in two worlds:
“Many people who are going through the early stages of the awakening process are no longer certain what their outer purpose is. What drives the world no longer drives them. Seeing the madness of our civilization so clearly, they may feel somewhat alienated from the culture around them. Some feel that they inhabit a no-man’s land between two worlds.” — Eckhart Tolle, Spiritual Teacher & Author of The Power of Now & A New Earth
Previously, I had no idea there was another way (or a way out) of how I had been living. I had followed the typical path in Western society: go to school, get a job, get another better job that pays more, buy more, spend more, etc. I followed this path without questioning a thing for over a decade. Totally guilty of keeping up with the Joneses—a sucker for the modern definition of the American Dream.
But, more and more things and experiences offered no long-term fulfillment. I was more miserable than ever. Many people already know money can’t buy happiness, but knowing and doing are two different things. I thought I knew too, but it took me living it to really open my eyes.
So, what was missing?
I realized all these things and experiences were really just band-aid solutions. What I really wanted was to own my time and live my newly found and created purpose:
“I wanted more than a job. I wanted deeper congruence between my inner and outer life.” — Parker J. Palmer
“I’ve learned that there is nothing more consistent with unhappiness than spending your time in a way that doesn’t serve who you are.” — Scott Dinsmore
I truly believe I’ve discovered a secret to living a purposeful, centered, fulfilled life. But really, ancient wisdom has known this “secret” for a long time, and it’s just now being validated by modern research.
Welcome to Sloww
To get a deeper look into how Sloww has evolved over the last few years, check out this post: Introducing Sloww 2.0: The Next Evolution in the Art of Slow Living
When Sloww launched, it was all about the first step of the journey: slowing down. After first-hand experience with living a life of burden, I wanted to experience life as bliss again. I was fascinated by the paradox of “Slow Living in a Fast World.”
Naturally, Sloww evolved over time. But, everything is still rooted in the first step of slowing down.
“Things” like presence, awareness, reflection, deep thinking, connectedness, centeredness, purpose, pace, unbusyness, less stress, bliss, lightness, enough, simplicity, spiritual growth, oneness, awakening, mindfulness, intentionality, alignment, consciousness, balance, time affluence, developing strong relationships, and understanding our common humanity.
This is the transformation that can take place once you begin to slow down:
That seems like a lot, but at its core you could say Sloww focuses on:
Lighter living encapsulates the physical, mental and emotional “stuff” that feels heavy in our lives. Lightening our lives is a process of subtracting the superficial and shifting focus inward in order to meet life face-to-face.
Higher purpose is my belief that every single person has a purpose. Based on my own personal experience and years of deep research into meaning and purpose, I can help guide people in the direction of their own path.
For the first time in human history, we live in the age of the individual. We are responsible for ourselves—the modern art of living is taking that responsibility. Sloww is your gateway to the good life—a bridge to personal transformation.
I believe my life purpose at this time on this planet is to be a synthesizer. I’m not a spiritual teacher, guru, philosopher, psychologist, professor, scientist, or anthropologist. Who am I then? I’m the human who tries to connect the dots between all those other humans—and many more.
I do all the homework and give you the highlights across diverse yet interconnected subject areas including: simplicity, spirituality, the meaning of life, purpose, self-actualization, philosophy, psychology, ancient wisdom, modern science, consciousness, transcendence, and more.
Who is Sloww for?
Anyone who is ready to slow down, live lighter, find and create purpose, think deeply, travel inwardly, live holistically, be a student of life, and be the hero / heroine of their own journey.
What is Sloww’s research, reading, and writing style?
The best way I can describe my style is deep:
- Deep in the sense that the questions and topics themselves are deep (meeting life face-to-face)
- Deep in the sense of the vast amount of research done on any given topic (utilizing syntopical reading)
- Deep in the sense that the finished writing is usually a deep, long read (synthesizing information/insights to create new ideas; high insight-to-word count)
In a digital world of superficial content, this deeper level is where I’ve found the real, timeless insights. You start to find patterns, themes, common denominators, and human universality.
In short, the approach I take is: self-taught + syntopical reading + synthesizing + summarizing.
Start Slowing Down to Awaken the Art of Living
The internet is a big place. My goal is for Sloww to become a go-to resource for you on your journey—your own quiet corner of the web to slow down, think deeply, get inspired, and ultimately create an action plan to live better. This may all sound simple, but it’s not always easy.
Are you ready to transform your life by stripping away the superficial, meeting life face-to-face, and living intentionally?
Get started here.
Or, you can read the most popular posts, my book recommendations and reading list, and “short” summaries of Sloww’s first 100 posts and posts 101-200.
If you’re really feeling ambitious and extra generous right now, check out the Premium Membership and different ways to support the site.
The best way to stay in the loop is to subscribe to the free email newsletter (form below) and follow socially @SlowwCo:
“You were born that way … quiet, thinking, observing the crazy things in life.” — My Mom (who just told me this in my 30s)
Go with the Sloww,
Kyle Kowalski
Founder, Sloww
