Why Slowing Down is the New Power Move for Women in Business

March 20, 2025

Lately, I’ve been having so many conversations — with clients, with friends, and honestly with myself — about this sense that something is shifting. There’s this growing feeling that the way we’ve been taught to build businesses — the constant urgency, the push for more, faster, now — just isn’t working anymore.

And if you’re feeling that too, you’re not imagining it.

Right now, there’s a quiet rebellion happening beneath the surface. A collective pull toward doing things differently — not by burning everything down, but by making subtle, intentional choices to build businesses that actually work for us.

I’ve been calling this the Living Business Movement — because at its heart, this shift is about creating businesses that grow, evolve, and move in rhythm with us, instead of constantly trying to keep up with someone else’s timeline or version of success.

Why This Shift Is Happening

I think part of the reason so many of us are feeling this shift is because — whether we realize it or not — we’re waking up to just how deeply capitalism has shaped the way we think about business.

For decades, we’ve been sold this narrative that success looks like constant upward growth. That the only way to be taken seriously in business is to keep moving faster, producing more, and squeezing every drop of productivity out of ourselves.

But here’s the truth no one talks about: This whole system is built on urgency as a form of control.

When you’re constantly in urgency mode — trying to keep up, trying not to fall behind — you’re not thinking long-term. You’re not connected to your creativity. You’re not making decisions from a place of self-trust.

You’re just... reacting.

And the system relies on that. Because the faster we move, the less time we have to question whether the game we’re playing even makes sense in the first place.

But now? More and more of us are starting to question the whole game.

We’re starting to realize that just because the world around us is moving at 100 miles an hour doesn’t mean we have to.

We’re starting to remember that slowness can be strategic. That sustainability is its own kind of rebellion.

And honestly? That might be one of the most powerful things we can do as women in business right now — to consciously choose to move differently.

The Neuroscience of Moving Differently

Let’s talk for a minute about what’s actually happening in our brains when we start to slow down — because this isn’t just about self-care or setting better boundaries.

When we’re in that constant state of urgency, our nervous system is in sympathetic activation — what you might know as fight-or-flight mode.

In that state, your brain is wired to prioritize short-term survival over long-term vision. You’re scanning for threats. You’re making quick decisions. You’re doing whatever it takes to just keep going.

But when we slow down — even just a little — we shift into parasympathetic activation. That’s the part of our nervous system where we feel calm, connected, and creative.

And here’s the part no one talks about:

You cannot build something truly sustainable from a place of urgency.

Your best ideas? Your most aligned decisions? The version of your business that actually feels like yours?

All of that comes from your parasympathetic state.

So when you’re choosing to move slower — when you’re giving yourself permission to pause, to question, to let things unfold — you’re not falling behind.

You’re actually building something that has the capacity to last.

What the Quiet Rebellion Looks Like in Practice

The quiet rebellion isn’t about completely stepping away from your business or rejecting ambition altogether.

It’s about subtle acts of defiance in your everyday choices — the small ways you’re choosing to trust yourself more, even when everything around you is still shouting for more, faster, now.

It might look like:

Taking the time to map out what you actually want your business to look like — instead of just following whatever blueprint everyone else is selling.
Resisting the pressure to constantly be launching or creating something new — and choosing to refine what you already have.
Building in more spaciousness between projects — even if that means making less money in the short term.
Letting your business evolve at its own pace — instead of forcing yourself to grow just because someone on Instagram told you that six figures is the goal.

And the hardest part?

A lot of these shifts will be invisible to anyone but you.

There won’t always be a big announcement or an Instagram post about how you’re moving differently.

But these small, quiet decisions add up.

They change the way you feel in your business.
They change the kind of work you’re able to create.

And when enough of us are making those invisible choices behind the scenes — that’s how the whole system starts to shift.

How to Start Your Own Quiet Rebellion

If you’re feeling that pull to move differently — but you’re not quite sure where to start — here are three questions to sit with this week:

Where is urgency showing up in your business right now — and whose timeline is it really serving?
What would it look like to trust your own pace — even just 10% more than you are right now?
If no one was watching, how would you be running your business differently?

You don’t have to burn everything down.
You don’t have to make some big public declaration that you’re opting out of hustle culture.

All you have to do is start listening to yourself — and choosing, in tiny ways, to build your business from that place of self-trust instead of urgency.

That’s the quiet rebellion.

And if you’re already feeling that pull — you’re already part of it.

Ready to Build Your Living Business? Let’s Explore What’s Possible

If this resonated with you, my Living Business Intensives might be just what you’re looking for. These one-on-one strategy and mentoring sessions are designed for women in business who are ready to move differently — to create a business that aligns with their vision, values, and lifestyle.

Together, we’ll craft a personalized plan that feels sustainable, intentional, and truly yours — so you can build something that grows with you, not against you.

👉 Curious to learn more? Visit The Living Business Project to explore how an Intensive could support you.

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