Carl Honore: In praise of slowness

譯者: Tzu Chi Yeh 審譯者: Wang-Ju Tsai

What I'd like to start off with is an observation,

在此次演講之前，我想要從一個觀察開始說起，

which is that if I've learned anything over the last year,

如果我去年對什麼事有印象的話，

it's that the supreme irony

那就是，極度諷刺地

of publishing a book about slowness

是我出版了一本關於慢速的書

is that you have to go around promoting it really fast.

但卻必須快速地到處宣傳它。

I seem to spend most of my time these days

最近我似乎花掉大部份的時間，

zipping from city to city, studio to studio,

快速地跑遍各個城市,各個錄音間，

interview to interview,

以及各個採訪。

serving up the book in really tiny bite-size chunks.

在真的很短暫的時間內介紹我的書。

Because everyone these days

因爲現在每個人

wants to know how to slow down,

都想要瞭解如何慢下來，

but they want to know how to slow down really quickly. So ...

但他們想要快速地瞭解如何慢下來。

so I did a spot on CNN the other day

幾天前我在CNN做了一個廣告

where I actually spent more time in makeup than I did talking on air.

事實上比起在上廣告的時間，我花了更多的時間在化妝上。

And I think that -- that's not really surprising though, is it?

然後我想-這也不是太令人驚訝的事，不是嗎？

Because that's kind of the world that we live in now,

因為在現今我們所生活的世界中，

a world stuck in fast-forward.

這個陷入快速前進狀態的世界。

A world obsessed with speed,

這個對速度過於迷戀的世界，

with doing everything faster, with cramming more and more

在越來越少的時間裡，想更快地做每件事，

into less and less time.

塞入更多的東西。

Every moment of the day feels like

每天的生活就像是

a race against the clock.

和時間在賽跑。

To borrow a phrase from Carrie Fisher, which is

借一句Carrie Fisher的話，

in my bio there; I'll just toss it out again --

這在我的自傳中也有，我只是再引用一次-

"These days even instant gratification takes too long." (Laughter)

"現在甚至連瞬間的滿足都要花很久的時間。"

And

而且

if you think about how we to try to make things better, what do we do?

想想如何讓事情做的更好，我們會怎麼做？

No, we speed them up, don't we? So we used to dial; now we speed dial.

我們會加快速度的去做，不是嗎？如同我們過去播電話號碼;現在我們用快速撥號。

We used to read; now we speed read. We used to walk; now we speed walk.

過去我們閱讀;現在我們速讀。過去我們慢走;現在我們競走。

And of course, we used to date and now we speed date.

我們過去約會，現在我們有快速約會。

And even things that are by their very nature slow --

即使那些原本就該慢慢做的事情-

we try and speed them up too.

我們也會試著將它加快速度。所以-

So I was in New York recently, and I walked past a gym

我最近在紐約時，經過了一個健身房

that had an advertisement in the window for a new course, a new evening course.

窗戶上貼了一個新的夜間課程的廣告。

And it was for, you guessed it, speed yoga.

你猜是什麼？-- 快速瑜伽。

So this -- the perfect solution for time-starved professionals

這是給時間緊迫的專業人士們最佳的解決辦法。

who want to, you know, salute the sun,

給那些想要練習拜日式，

but only want to give over about 20 minutes to it.

但只想要花20分鐘的人來學。

I mean, these are sort of the extreme examples,

我的意思是，這些都是極端的例子，

and they're amusing and good to laugh at.

真的很有趣，而且是很好笑。

But there's a very serious point,

但這裡有一個非常嚴肅的重點，

and I think that in the headlong dash of daily life,

我認為在每天匆忙的快速奔走中，

we often lose sight of the damage

我們往往會沒察覺到

that this roadrunner form of living does to us.

這種競走式的生活方式對我們的傷害在哪。

We're so marinated in the culture of speed

我們是如此地沈浸在崇拜速度的文化中

that we almost fail to notice the toll it takes

使我們常常忽略了

on every aspect of our lives --

我們生命各方面所要付出的代價。

on our health, our diet, our work,

在我們的健康，飲食，工作，

our relationships, the environment and our community.

關係上，環境上以及社會上所造成的影響。

And sometimes it takes

而且有時候我們需要一個-

a wake-up call, doesn't it,

-一個警示，不是嗎？用來-

to alert us to the fact that we're hurrying through our lives,

提醒我們正在匆忙地渡過我們的生命。

instead of actually living them; that we're

而不是真正地在生活;

living the fast life, instead of the good life.

我們過得快，而不是過得好。

And I think for many people, that wake-up call

而我認為對許多人來說，那個警示

takes the form of an illness.

需要用疾病的形式來呈現。

You know, a burnout, or eventually the body says,

疾病突然爆發，最後身體說

"I can't take it anymore," and throws in the towel.

"我再也受不了了"，投降。

Or maybe a relationship goes up in smoke

或是因為我們沒有足夠的時間，耐心，

because we haven't had the time, or the patience,

去靜靜地陪伴另一半，

or the tranquility,

去聽他們說話，

to be with the other person, to listen to them.

因而讓一段關係化為泡影。

And my wake-up call came when I started

而我的警示出現在

reading bedtime stories to my son,

我讀床邊故事給我兒子聽的時候。

and I found that at the end of day,

我發現在他睡前，

I would go into his room and I just couldn't slow down -- you know,

我會走進他房間，但我就是無法慢下來，

I'd be speed reading "The Cat In The Hat."

我會很快念過"戴帽子的貓"的故事。

I'd be -- you know, I'd be skipping lines here,

我會跳著念，

paragraphs there, sometimes a whole page,

有時候是跳過一整頁。

and of course, my little boy knew the book inside out, so we would quarrel.

當然，我的小兒子非常瞭解這本書，所以我們開始爭吵。

And what should have been the most relaxing, the most intimate,

這應該是一天中最舒服，最親近，

the most tender moment of the day,

最溫柔的時刻。

when a dad sits down to read to his son,

當一個父親要坐下來念一些故事給兒子聽時，

became instead this kind of gladiatorial battle of wills,

反而卻變成了這種意志的鬥爭;

a clash between my speed

一個他的速度和我的-

and his slowness.

或是我的快和他的慢之間的衝突。

And this went on for some time,

而這種情況持續了一段時間，

until I caught myself scanning a newspaper article

直到我在報紙上讀到一篇

with timesaving tips for fast people.

給追求快速的人們提供省時的小技巧的文章。

And one of them made reference to a series of books called

其中一個引用了一系列稱為

"The One-Minute Bedtime Story."

"一分鐘床邊故事"的書作為參考。

And I wince saying those words now,

我現在真的不想這樣說，

but my first reaction at the time was very different.

但那時我第一個反應跟現在是非常不同的。

My first reflex was to say,

我第一個反應是說，

"Hallelujah -- what a great idea!

"我的老天-多棒的一個點子！"

This is exactly what I'm looking for to speed up bedtime even more."

這就是我在尋找如何更快地說完床邊故事的方法。

But thankfully,

但幸好，

a light bulb went on over my head, and my next reaction was very different,

一個燈泡在我腦中亮了起來，我的第二個反應是非常不同的，

and I took a step back, and I thought,

我往後退了一步想，

"Whoa -- you know, has it really come to this?

"哇-真的要這樣子嗎？

Am I really in such a hurry that I'm prepared

我真的有這麼急到要

to fob off my son with a sound byte at the end of the day?"

用一分鐘故事來敷衍我兒子？"

And I put away the newspaper --

然後-我將報紙放到一旁-

and I was getting on a plane -- and I sat there,

當時我正要上飛機-我坐在那，

and I did something I hadn't done for a long time -- which is I did nothing.

做了一件我很久沒有做的事：那就是不做任何事。

I just thought, and I thought long and hard.

我在想，深刻地想了很久。

And by the time I got off that plane, I'd decided I wanted to do something about it.

當我要下飛機時，我決定要做一些改變。

I wanted to investigate this whole roadrunner culture,

我想要檢視這整個競走式的社會文化，

and what it was doing to me and to everyone else.

這樣的文化對我以及其他人有什麼影響。

And I had two questions in my head.

當時我腦中想到兩個問題。

The first was, how did we get so fast?

第一，我們怎麼變得如此快速的？

And the second is, is it possible,

第二，要慢下來是

or even desirable, to slow down?

可能的或是大家期望的嗎？

Now, if you think about

現在，如果你思考

how our world got so accelerated, the usual suspects rear their heads.

世界是如何變得如此快速？通常有以下幾點可能的說法，

You think of, you know, urbanization,

我們會想到城市化，

consumerism, the workplace, technology.

消費主義，工作環境，科技。

But I think if you cut through

但我認為如果先撇開這些不談，

those forces, you get to what might be the deeper

你可能會發現更深層的動力

driver, the nub of the question,

問題的核心，

which is how we think about time itself.

那就是我們如何看待“時間”這個觀念。

In other cultures, time is cyclical.

在其他的文化中，時間是循環的。

It's seen as moving in great,

像是在一個巨大的循環中

unhurried circles.

不疾不徐地移動。

It's always renewing and refreshing itself.

它會不斷地自我更新，自我呈現新的面貌。

Whereas in the West, time is linear.

但在西方，時間是線性的。

It's a finite resource;

是個有限的資源，

it's always draining away.

總是在消失中。

You either use it, or lose it.

你要嘛使用它，否則就會失去它。

"Time is money," as Benjamin Franklin said.

班傑明 富蘭克林說的好，時間就是金錢。

And I think what that does to us psychologically

我認為它對我們心理上的影響是-

is it creates an equation.

它創造了一個方程式。

Time is scarce, so what do we do?

時間是稀少的，我們該怎麼做？

Well -- well, we speed up, don't we?

於是，我們加快速度，不是嗎？

We try and do more and more with less and less time.

我們試著在越來越少的時間做更多的事。

We turn every moment of every day

我們把每天的每一刻轉變成

into a race to the finish line --

一場朝向終點線的賽跑。

a finish line, incidentally, that we never reach,

順帶一提，這個終點線我們永遠也抵達不了，

but a finish line nonetheless.

但它畢竟還是一條終點線。

And I guess that the question is,

我想問題的癥結在於，

is it possible to break free from that mindset?

我們有沒有可能從這個慣性思維中跳脫出來？

And thankfully, the answer is yes, because

幸好，答案是肯定的，因為

what I discovered, when I began looking around, that there is

當我開始環顧四周，我發現

a global backlash against this culture that

全球已經有了對這種

tells us that faster is always better, and that busier is best.

快總是比較好的，越忙越好的文化的反動。

Right across the world, people are doing the unthinkable:

全世界，都有人在做讓我們意想不到的事：

they're slowing down, and finding that,

他們在放慢速度，

although conventional wisdom tells you that if you slow down, you're road kill,

雖然老一輩的智慧說如果放慢速度，就會被時代拋棄，

the opposite turns out to be true:

但事實上結果卻是相反的。

that by slowing down at the right moments,

在正確的時候放慢速度，

people find that they do everything better.

我們可以發現能把事情做的更好。

They eat better; they make love better; they exercise better;

也能夠吃的更好，性生活更和諧，運動起來也更有效果，

they work better; they live better.

工作品質也提升，活得也更好。

And, in this kind of cauldron

在這些時刻，地點以及

of moments and places and acts of deceleration,

減慢速度的行為中

lie what a lot of people now refer to as

就是很多人稱為的

the "International Slow Movement."

國際慢活運動。

Now if you'll permit me a small act of hypocrisy,

現在，如果你們能容許我小小的虛偽的話，

I'll just give you a very quick overview of

我來為你們快速的概述一下-

what's going on inside the Slow Movement. If you think of food,

慢活運動是什麽。如果你想到吃，

many of you will have heard of the Slow Food movement.

許多人可能都聽過慢食運動。

Started in Italy, but has spread across the world,

源自於義大利，但已經遍及了全世界，

and now has 100,000 members

現在在超過五十個國家

in 50 countries.

擁有超過十萬名會員。

And it's driven by a very simple and sensible message,

這背後有一個非常簡單且明智的訊息，

which is that we get more pleasure and more health

就是當我們如果能用不急不徐的速度栽種，煮，食用食物時，

from our food when we

我們就能夠從食物中

cultivate, cook and consume it at a reasonable pace.

得到更多的快樂以及更健康的身體。

I think also the explosion of

我認為有機耕作的蓬勃發展，

the organic farming movement, and the renaissance of farmers' markets,

以及農人市場的復興，

are other illustrations

也説明了另一個事實，那就是

of the fact that people are desperate to get away from

人們急著想要從依照工業化的時程表所製造出的吃的，

eating and cooking and cultivating their food

煮的以及種植的食物，

on an industrial timetable.

脫逃出來的一個實證。

They want to get back to slower rhythms.

他們想要重新掌握慢速的節奏。

And out of the Slow Food movement has grown something

從慢食運動中也發展出了一些

called the Slow Cities movement, which has started in Italy,

稱為慢速城市的運動，這也是源自於義大利，

but has spread right across Europe and beyond.

並且已經往歐洲及其他地方發展。

And in this, towns

在這個運動裏

begin to rethink how they organize the urban landscape,

人們重新思考如何設計城市，

so that people are encouraged to slow down

使得居民能放慢速度-

and smell the roses and connect with one another.

聞聞玫瑰的花香並與他人產生更多連結。

So they might curb traffic,

他們可能會禁止車輛通行，

or put in a park bench, or some green space.

在公園擺上長椅，或是設置一些綠色景象。

And in some ways, these changes add up to more than the sum of their parts,

某種程度上，這些改變能夠產生一加一大於二的功效，

because I think when a Slow City becomes officially a Slow City,

我認為當一個號稱為慢速城市變成實質上的慢速城市時，

it's kind of like a philosophical declaration.

就像是種哲學上的宣言。

It's saying to the rest of world, and to the people in that town,

宣告世界上其他國家，並告訴在那個城市中的人民說，

that we believe that in the 21st century,

我們相信在21世紀

慢速能夠扮演重要角色。

In medicine, I think a lot of people are deeply disillusioned

在醫療方面，我認為很多人已經

with the kind of quick-fix mentality

對傳統醫療快速治療的心態

you find in conventional medicine.

失去了信心。

And millions of them around the world are turning

全世界數百萬的人反而轉向尋求

to complementary and alternative forms of medicine,

互補的或替代性的醫療形式，

which tend to tap into sort of

這種形式的醫療傾向於使用

slower, gentler, more holistic forms of healing.

較慢，較溫和，更全面性的治療形式。

Now, obviously the jury is out on many of these complementary therapies,

現在，很明顯地，這些另類的治療方式並沒有一個定論，

and I personally doubt that the coffee enema

我個人對咖啡洗腸法能否獲得主流的認同

will ever, you know, gain mainstream approval.

仍是報持懷疑的態度。

But other treatments

但其他的治療方式

such as acupuncture and massage, and even just relaxation,

比如針灸和按摩，甚至只是稍微的放鬆，

clearly have some kind of benefit.

很清楚地都有某些的效果。

And blue-chip medical colleges everywhere

世界上一流的醫學院都

are starting to study these things to find out how they work,

在研究這些方法是如何發生作用的，

and what we might learn from them.

以及我們可以從這學到些什麼。

Sex. There's an awful lot of fast sex around, isn't there?

性。我們身邊存在著非常多的快速性愛，不是嗎？

I was coming to --

我那時正要-

well -- no pun intended there.

嗯-我沒有要暗示些什麼。

I was making my way, let's say, slowly to Oxford,

我當時正慢慢地，這麼說吧，前往牛津的路上，

and I went through a news agent, and I saw a magazine,

我遇到了一個書報攤，我看到一本雜誌，

a men's magazine, and it said on the front,

一個男性雜誌，標題寫著，

"How to bring your partner to orgasm in 30 seconds."

"如何在30秒內讓你的伴侶達到高潮。"

So, you know, even sex

所以，現在，即使是性愛

is on a stopwatch these days.

也是放在碼錶上來計算的。

Now, you know,

現在，你們瞭解，

I like a quickie as much as the next person,

我跟大家一樣喜歡快快完事，

but I think that there's an awful lot to be gained

但我認為從慢速的性愛中

from slow sex -- from slowing down in the bedroom.

在房間內放慢速度--能夠獲得更多的東西-。

You know, you tap into that -- those deeper,

你用這些更深層的

sort of, psychological, emotional, spiritual currents,

一種心理上的，情感上的，心靈交流的方式去做，

and you get a better orgasm with the buildup.

那你就會因為慢慢的累積而獲得更棒的高潮。

You can get more bang for your buck, let's say.

你的身體會得到更多的快樂。

I mean, the Pointer Sisters said it most eloquently, didn't they,

我的意思是，指針姊妹把這件事表達的更清楚，不是嗎？

when they sang the praises of "a lover with a slow hand."

當他們用歌來讚賞情人間緩慢游移的手時，

Now, we all laughed at Sting

幾年前史汀在學習Tantric瑜伽時

a few years ago when he went Tantric,

全部的人都嘲笑他，

but you fast-forward a few years, and now you find couples of all ages

但把時間快轉幾年後，現在你會發現所有年齡層的伴侶

flocking to workshops, or maybe just

都去參加性學講座

on their own in their own bedrooms, finding ways

或者在房間靠他們自己的方法

to put on the brakes and have better sex.

放慢速度，擁有更好的性愛。

And of course, in Italy where -- I mean, Italians always seem to know

當然，在義大利-我的意思是，義大利人似乎總是知道

where to find their pleasure --

如何找到他們的快樂-

they've launched an official Slow Sex movement.

他們發起了官方的慢速性愛運動。

The workplace.

在工作上-

Right across much of the world --

在世界上大多數的地方-

North America being a notable exception --

工作時數已經減少了，

working hours have been coming down.

但北美地區是個值得注意的例外。

And Europe is an example of that,

歐洲就是一個例子，

and people finding that their quality of life improves

當人們工作的時數少了，

as they're working less, and also

就能夠尋找提升生活品質的方法。

that their hourly productivity goes up.

而且每個小時的生產力也提升。

Now, clearly there are problems with

現在，很明顯的，在法國每週35工時制

the 35-hour workweek in France --

有了問題-

too much, too soon, too rigid.

太多，太快，太死板。

But other countries in Europe, notably the Nordic countries,

但在歐洲其他國家，尤其是北歐國家，

are showing that it's possible

也證明了不需要人人都是工作狂

to have a kick-ass economy

也可能有

without being a workaholic.

一個很強的經濟實力。

And Norway, Sweden,

挪威，瑞士

Denmark and Finland now rank

丹麥和芬蘭目前都位居

among the top six most competitive nations on Earth,

全世界最有競爭力的國家前六名，

and they work the kind of hours that would make the average American

但它們的工作時數之短會讓一般美國人都

weep with envy.

忌妒到想哭。

And if you go beyond sort of the country level,

而且不看國家的排名，

down at the micro-company level,

看看微型公司的例子，

more and more companies now are realizing

越來越多的公司都意識到

that they need to allow their staff

他們需要准許他們的員工

either to work fewer hours or just to unplug --

少工作幾個小時，或是

to take a lunch break, or to go sit in a quiet room,

在午餐時間休息一下，在安靜的房間坐著，

to switch off their Blackberrys and laptops -- you at the back --

關掉黑莓機-在說你呢-後面那個

mobile phones,

和手機，

during the work day or on the weekend, so that they have time to recharge

在工作日或假日時，讓他們有時間可以充電，

and for the brain to slide into that

讓腦袋進入那種

kind of creative mode of thought.

創造型的思考模式中。

It's not just, though, these days,

這些日子以來，不僅是

adults who overwork, though, is it? It's children, too.

成人們都工作超時。連孩子也是，不是嗎？

I'm 37, and my childhood ended in the mid-'80s,

我37歲，我的童年在80年代中期就結束了，

and I look at kids now, and I'm just amazed by the way they

我現在看著孩子們，我很驚訝

race around with more homework,

他們寫功課

more tutoring, more extracurriculars

參加教學課程，參加課外活動，

than we would ever have conceived of a generation ago.

忙碌的程度我們那個世代想像不到的。

And some of the most heartrending emails

從我的網站收到的

that I get on my website

一些最鼓舞人的信

are actually from adolescents

都是青少年寄來的，

hovering on the edge of burnout, pleading with me

他們在燃燒殆盡間徘徊，懇求我寫信給

to write to their parents,

他們的父母親

to help them slow down, to help them get off this

幫助他們慢下來，幫助他們脫離

full-throttle treadmill.

全速前進的運轉。

But thankfully, there is a backlash there in parenting as well,

但幸好，父母親間也開始有反思，

and you're finding that, you know, towns in the United States

我們也可以發現，在美國的一些城市

are now banding together and banning extracurriculars

會團結起來在每個月的特定一天

on a particular day of the month, so that people can,

禁止課外活動，讓人們可以舒解壓力

you know, decompress and have some family time, and slow down.

有更多的家庭時間，並放慢速度。

Homework is another thing. There are homework bans

家庭作業是另一件事。在已開發國家間

springing up all over the developed world

禁止家庭作業是很興盛的事。

in schools which had been piling on the homework for years,

學校過去許多年來堆積很多家庭作業，

and now they're discovering that less can be more.

現在他們發現，少可能是更多。

So there was a case up in Scotland recently

最近在蘇格蘭有一個案例

where a fee-paying, high-achieving private school

有一間付費的高品質私人學校

banned homework

禁止給13歲以下的人

for everyone under the age of 13,

家庭作業，

and the high-achieving parents freaked out and said,

這讓有高度期望的父母親嚇了一大跳，並說

"What are you -- you know, our kids will fall" -- the headmaster said,

"你以為你是誰-這會讓我們的小孩退步"-

"No, no, your children need to slow down at the end of the day."

學務長說："不會的，你們的小孩在每天結束時要放慢速度。"

And just this last month, the exam results came in,

就在上個月，測驗結果出來了，

and in math, science, marks went up 20 percent

在數學，科學，成績都比起去年

on average last year.

平均提升了百分之20

And I think what's very revealing is that

我想這給我們的啓發是

the elite universities, who are often cited as the reason

要進入菁英大學，常常是父母親驅使小孩並給他們

that people drive their kids and hothouse them so much,

過度的照顧的原因，

are starting to notice the caliber of students

但這些精英大學開始發現學生的素質

coming to them is falling. These kids have wonderful marks;

都在下降。這些學生有很好的成績，

they have CVs jammed with extracurriculars,

他們擁有塞滿課外活動的履歷表，

to the point that would make your eyes water.

多到會讓你想要哭得程度。

But they lack spark; they lack

但它們缺乏活動，

the ability to think creatively and think outside --

他們缺乏創意式的思考，並獨立思考-

they don't know how to dream. And so what these Ivy League schools,

他們不知道怎麼想像。那些常春藤系的學校，

and Oxford and Cambridge and so on, are starting to send a message

牛津與劍橋等等，都開始給家長一個訊息

to parents and students that they need to put on the brakes a little bit.

就是他們需要放慢一點速度。

And in Harvard, for instance, they send out

比方說在哈佛大學，他們向

a letter to undergraduates -- freshmen --

大一新生發出一個訊息

telling them that they'll get more out of life, and more out of Harvard,

告訴他們他們會在生命中得到更多，比起從哈佛得到的更多，

if they put on the brakes, if they do less,

如果他們能夠放慢速度的話。如果他們做得少一些，

but give time to things, the time that things need,

但給事情多一些時間，多給一些事情需要的時間，

to enjoy them, to savor them.

好去享受事物，品味事物。

And even if they sometimes do nothing at all.

即使有時候他們什麼也不做。

And that letter is called -- very revealing, I think --

那封信稱為-我認為非常啓發人心-

"Slow Down!" -- with an exclamation mark on the end.

"慢下來！"-最後還有一個驚歎號。

So wherever you look, the message, it seems to me, is the same:

不論你怎麼看這個訊息，在我看來，都是一樣的。

that less is very often more,

往往少就是多，

that slower is very often

慢一些往往比較好

better. But that said, of course,

但是，當然

it's not that easy to slow down, is it?

慢下來可不是這麼容易的，不是嗎？

I mean, you heard that I got a speeding ticket

我的意思是，當我在為我的書做"慢速的好處"的研究時，

while I was researching my book on the benefits of slowness,

我收到了一個超速的罰單，

and that's true, but that's not all of it.

這是真的，精彩的還在後面。

I was actually en route to a dinner

我當時在前往一個晚餐會的路上

held by Slow Food at the time.

是慢食協會舉辦的。

And if that's not shaming enough, I got that ticket in Italy.

如果這還不算丟臉的話，我當時是在義大利收到罰單的。

And if any of you have ever driven on an Italian highway,

如果你們有在義大利的高速公路開過車的話，

you'll have a pretty good idea of how fast I was going.

你就會知道我當時開得有多快。

(Laughter)

（笑聲）

But why is it so hard to slow down?

但為什麼慢下來這麼困難呢？

I think there are various reasons.

我想這有很多種原因。

One is that speed is fun, you know, speed is sexy.

其中一個是：速度是好玩的-，速度很性感。

It's all that adrenaline rush. It's hard to give it up.

這就是腎上腺素的亢奮。這很難能戒掉的。

I think there's a kind of metaphysical dimension --

我認為有種形而上的思考方式

that speed becomes a way of walling ourselves off

速度變成一種屏障

from the bigger, deeper questions.

把我們自己擋在更大更深層的問題之外。

We fill our head with distraction, with busyness,

我們的腦中充滿了讓人分心的事以及忙碌，

so that we don't have to ask,

所以我們也沒必要問

am I well? Am I happy? Are my children growing up right?

我們好不好？我快樂嗎？我的小孩有好好成長嗎？

Are politicians making good decisions on my behalf?

政客們有在為我的權益做最好的決定嗎？

Another reason -- although I think, perhaps, the most powerful reason --

另一個理由-我認為大概是最有力的理由-

why we find it hard to slow down is the cultural taboo

為什麼我們發現要慢下來這麼困難？

that we've erected against slowing down.

我們建立的文化上的忌諱反對我們慢下來。

"Slow" is a dirty word in our culture.

慢在我們的文化中是個不好的字眼。

It's a byword for "lazy," "slacker,"

慢是懶散，敷衍的代名詞，

for being somebody who gives up.

是用來說那些容易放棄的人。

You know, "he's a bit slow." It's actually synonymous

“他有一點慢。“實際上是跟

with being stupid.

笨是同義的。

I guess what the Slow Movement -- the purpose of the Slow Movement,

我想慢速運動的目的，

or its main goal, really, is to tackle that taboo,

它主要的目標就是要處理這個文化禁忌，

and to say that yes,

並說明：沒錯，

sometimes slow is not the answer,

有時候“慢”不見得

that there is such a thing as "bad slow."

就是"不好的慢"。

You know, I got stuck on the M25,

有次我在M25號公路上被塞住了，

which is a ring road around London, recently,

那是條繞著倫敦的環狀公路，

and spent three-and-a-half hours there. And I can tell you,

並在那花了三個半小時。我可以跟你說，

that's really bad slow.

那才真的是不好的慢。

But the new idea,

但用一個新想法來看，

the sort of revolutionary idea, of the Slow Movement,

慢速運動的革命性觀點，

is that there is such a thing as "good slow," too.

是在說"好的慢"也是有的。

And good slow is, you know, taking the time

好的慢速就是，花上一些時間

to eat a meal with your family, with the TV switched off.

跟家人吃一頓飯，並關上電視。

Or taking the time to look at a problem from all angles

或是花一些時間在辦公室從所有角度來理解一個問題

in the office to make the best decision

並工作上

at work.

做出最好的決定。

Or even simply just taking the time

僅僅需要花一些時間

to slow down

好好慢下來

and savor your life.

好好的品味你的人生。

Now, one of the things that I found most uplifting

現在，自從我的書出版後，我發現

about all of this stuff that's happened around the book

最振奮人心的事就是

since it came out, is the reaction to it.

大家對書的反應。

And I knew that when my book on slowness came out,

我也知道當我的關於慢速的書出來後，

it would be welcomed by the New Age brigade,

它會被新世代所歡迎，

but it's also been taken up, with great gusto,

在商業界，也被津津樂道的討論

by the corporate world -- you know,

以及被一些商業媒體

business press, but also

還有被大公司與

big companies and leadership organizations.

領導機構所接受。

Because people at the top of the chain, people like you, I think,

因為在領導階層的頂端的人們，如同你們一樣，

are starting to realize that there's too much

開始會發現在這個系統中

speed in the system,

有太多的速度存在了，

there's too much busyness, and it's time to find,

有太多的忙碌，是該重新找回

or get back to that lost art of shifting gears.

對速度的掌控的時候了。

Another encouraging sign, I think,

另一個令人鼓舞的跡象是，

is that it's not just in the developed world

這個觀念不止在已開發國家

that this idea's been taken up. In the developing world,

開始流傳起來。同時在發展中國家，

in countries that are on the verge of making that leap

在那些即將進入第一級世界體系的國家

into first world status -- China, Brazil,

如中國，巴西，

Thailand, Poland, and so on --

泰國，波蘭等等-

these countries have embraced the idea of the Slow Movement,

這些國家中有許多人已經在擁抱慢速運動的觀念，

many people in them, and there's a debate going on

在媒體上以及在路上，

in their media, on the streets.

也展開了許多的辯論。

Because I think they're looking at the West, and they're saying,

因為我想他們在看著西方世界，他們在說，

"Well, we like that aspect of what you've got,

"好吧，我們喜歡你們擁有的觀念，

but we're not so sure about that."

但我們不是非常確定那是正確的。"

So all of that said, is it,

所以這一切的一切，

I guess, is it possible?

都是可能的嗎？

That's really the main question before us today. Is it possible

今天，這就是在我們面前最主要的問題。

to slow down? And

要慢下來是有可能的嗎？

I'm happy to be able to say to you

我很高興的要告訴你們，

that the answer is a resounding yes.

答案絕對是肯定的。

And I present myself as Exhibit A,

我自己就是一個實證，

a kind of reformed and rehabilitated

一個重塑且改過

speed-aholic.

的速度狂。

I still love speed. You know, I live in London,

我仍然愛好速度。我在倫敦生活，

and I work as a journalist,

我的工作是個記者，

and I enjoy the buzz and the busyness,

我享受電話的鈴聲以及忙碌感，

and the adrenaline rush that comes from both of those things.

以及從這些事產生的腎上腺素的提升感。

I play squash and ice hockey,

我打壁球以及冰上區棍球，

two very fast sports, and I wouldn't give them up for the world.

兩個都是非常快速的運動，我不會為了誰而放棄它們。

But I've also, over the last year or so,

但我也在去年開始，

got in touch with my inner tortoise.

開始跟我內在的緩慢感接觸。

(Laughter)

（笑聲）

And what that means is that

這意思是說

I no longer

我不再

overload myself gratuitously.

沒來由的讓我自己超載。

My default mode is no longer

我的預設行為模式不再是

to be a rush-aholic.

一個愛好急促的人。

I no longer hear

我再也聽不到

time's winged chariot drawing near,

時間的急速戰車逼近我的聲音，

or at least not as much as I did before.

至少不像我以前那樣。

I can actually hear it now, because I see my time is ticking off.

我現在也還是可以聽到，因為我看到我的時間快用完了。

And the upshot of all of that is that

這全部的結論是

I actually feel a lot happier, healthier,

我真的比以往更感到充滿快樂，健康，

more productive than I ever have.

更有生產力。

I feel like I'm living

似乎我在過著

my life rather than actually just racing through it.

我的生活，而不只是再匆忙的渡過日子。

And perhaps, the most important

也許，最重要的

measure of the success of this

衡量慢活成功的標準是

is that I feel that my relationships are a lot deeper,

我和他人的關係更加地深刻，

richer, stronger.

豐富且強烈。

And for me, I guess, the litmus test

對我來說，慢活是如何發生作用及到底是什麼意思

for whether this would work, and what it would mean,

最清楚的說明方法是

was always going to be bedtime stories, because that's sort of where

用和兒子的床邊故事來說明， 因為那是個

the journey began. And there too the news is

旅程開始的地方。而且結果

rosy. You know,

也是好的。

at the end of the day, I go into my son's room.

在每天的結束時，我進入我兒子的房間。

I don't wear a watch. I switch off my computer,

我不會帶著手錶。我關上我的電腦，

so I can't hear the email pinging into the basket,

所以我不會聽到郵件進入信箱的聲音，

and I just slow down to his pace and we read.

我配合他的速度降低我的速度，然後我們開始閱讀。

And because children have their own tempo and internal clock,

因為孩子們有他們自己的節奏以及內在生理時鐘，

they don't do quality time,

他們不會善用時間，

where you schedule 10 minutes for them to open up to you.

你計畫用十分鐘的時間來讓他們對你打開心房。

They need you to move at their rhythm.

他們需要你配合他們的節奏。

I find that 10 minutes into a story, you know,

我發現我開始講了十分鐘的故事，

my son will suddenly say, "You know,

我兒子會突然說，

something happened in the playground today that really bothered me."

"今天在遊樂場中發生了一些真的讓我很煩的事。"

And we'll go off and have a conversation on that.

然後我們就不講故事，開始對談這件事。

And I now find that bedtime stories

我現在發現床邊故事

used to be

過去是我的任務清單中的一項

a box on my to-do list, something that I dreaded,

是一個讓我害怕的事，

because it was so slow and I had to get through it quickly.

因為念床邊故事是如此的慢，我必須要快速的帶過它。

It's become my reward at the end of the day,

現在它變成我每天結束時的一個獎勵，

something I really cherish.

一種我真的-真的很珍惜的東西。

And I have a kind of Hollywood ending

這個下午的演講

to my talk this afternoon,

有一個好萊塢式的好結尾，

which goes a little bit like this:

是像這樣的：

a few months ago, I was getting ready to go on

幾個月前，我正準備要展開

another book tour, and I had my bags packed.

另一個書的介紹行程，我打包好行李。

I was downstairs by the front door, and I was waiting for a taxi,

我當時在樓下的前門，等著計程車，

and my son came down the stairs and

我兒子下樓來，

he'd made a card for me. And he was carrying it.

他身上帶了一張做給我的卡片。

He'd gone and stapled two cards, very like these, together,

他把兩張卡片釘在一起，就像這樣，

and put a sticker of his favorite

然後在正面放上他最喜歡的

character, Tintin, on the front.

卡通人物丁丁的貼紙。

And he said to me,

他和我說，

or he handed this to me, and I read it,

他把卡片遞給我，我讀了卡片

and it said, "To Daddy, love Benjamin."

上面寫著"給爸爸，愛你的班傑明。"

And I thought, "Aw, that's really sweet.

我想"啊，真是貼心，

Is that a good luck on the book tour card?"

這是祝我旅行順利的祝福嗎？

And he said, "No, no, no, Daddy -- this is a card

他說"不不不，爸爸-這是一個卡片

for being the best story reader in the world."

給全世界最會說故事的人。”

And I thought, "Yeah, you know, this slowing down thing really does work."

我想"沒錯，讓事情慢下來還真的有用..."

Thank you very much.

非常謝謝你們。