--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: In an age of acceleration, nothing can be…" description: "\"“In an age of acceleration, nothing can be more exhilarating than going slow. And in an age of distraction, nothing is so luxurious as paying attention..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/2e6/pico-iyer-1252_acceleration_in-an-age-of-acceleration-nothing-can-be_3095546.png" --- # In an age of acceleration, nothing can be more… ![“In an age of acceleration, nothing can be more exhilarating than going slow. And in an age of distraction, nothing is so luxurious as paying attention. And in an age of constant movement, nothing is so urgent as sitting still.” quote by Pico Iyer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/2e6/pico-iyer-1252_acceleration_in-an-age-of-acceleration-nothing-can-be_3095546.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/2e6/pico-iyer-1252_acceleration_in-an-age-of-acceleration-nothing-can-be_3095546.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/2e6/pico-iyer-1252_acceleration_in-an-age-of-acceleration-nothing-can-be_3095546.png) > ““In an age of acceleration, nothing can be more exhilarating than going slow. And in an age of distraction, nothing is so luxurious as paying attention. And in an age of constant movement, nothing is so urgent as sitting still.”” [Pico Iyer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pico-iyer/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. In a fast, distracted world, slowing down, paying attention, and stillness become rare luxuries and urgent needs. **In simple terms:** Slow, attentive stillness is valuable. Key Takeaway Practice mindful pause. Themes mindfulness slow living attention Mood calm thoughtful Type inspirational philosophical When to use this quote - work - digital overload - stress management Key Concepts philosophy psychology well‑being Questions to Reflect On - How can you create moments of stillness daily? - What benefits arise from focused attention? A Different Perspective Stillness may be hard to achieve amid constant demands. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Age](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/age/) [Luxury](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/luxury/) [Paying Attention](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/paying-attention/) [Stillness](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/stillness/) ## Related quotes > [In an age of speed, I began to think nothing could be more exhilarating than going slow. In an age of distraction, nothing can…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pico-iyer/in-an-age-of-speed-i-began-to-think-nothing-could-be-more/) [Pico Iyer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pico-iyer/) > [In an age of acceleration, nothing can be more exhilarating than going slow.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pico-iyer/in-an-age-of-acceleration-nothing-can-be-more-exhilarating-than-going-2/) [Pico Iyer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pico-iyer/) > [“The pace of this modern age is not conducive to maintaining one’s consciousness. Glued to our electronics, we are blind and deaf to the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/l-m-browning/the-pace-of-this-modern-age-is-not-conducive-to-maintaining-one-s/) [L.M. Browning](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/l-m-browning/) > [You don't burn out from going to fast. You burn out from going too slow and getting bored.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cliff-burton/you-don-t-burn-out-from-going-to-fast-you-burn-out-from-going-too/) [Cliff Burton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cliff-burton/) > [Keep up, if you're going slow, then ya better speed up. If ya get the chance, then dont freeze up. Pump with it babe…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/brick-and-lace/keep-up-if-you-re-going-slow-then-ya-better-speed-up-if-ya-get-the/) [Brick And Lace](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/brick-and-lace/) > [“It feels as though we’re going in slow motion. I think we’ll never get away. But eventually the Ferris wheel is far enough away…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lauren-destefano/it-feels-as-though-we-re-going-in-slow-motion-i-think-we-ll-never-get/) [Lauren DeStefano](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lauren-destefano/) > [People come, then go. A song plays, then ends. You take a bath, then you get dirty again. You eat, then you get hungry…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/people-come-then-go-a-song-plays-then-ends-you-take-a-bath-then-you/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [The fact that the talks are resuming is a big positive. But it's going to be a slow process.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/arjuna-mahendran/the-fact-that-the-talks-are-resuming-is-a-big-positive-but-it-s-going/) [Arjuna Mahendran](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/arjuna-mahendran/) > [I don't think that it's appropriate for the government to say, in effect, we're going to slow down the growth of housing or that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-deukmejian/i-don-t-think-that-it-s-appropriate-for-the-government-to-say-in/) [George Deukmejian](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-deukmejian/) > [“What you have to do, if you get caught in this gumption trap of value rigidity, is slow down – you’re going to have…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-m-pirsig/what-you-have-to-do-if-you-get-caught-in-this-gumption-trap-of-value/) [Robert M. Pirsig](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-m-pirsig/) > [“You can cover a lot of ground going slow when you’re on the right path.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/brittany-burgunder/you-can-cover-a-lot-of-ground-going-slow-when-you-re-on-the-right-path/) [Brittany Burgunder](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/brittany-burgunder/) > [We can't afford to waste time going slow on changing our party so now is not the time to put our foot on the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-cameron/we-can-t-afford-to-waste-time-going-slow-on-changing-our-party-so-now/) [David Cameron](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-cameron/) > [If you surround yourself with a bunch of guys who no mas se quieren puro pari and are like, "Aaah, let's go get some…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gabriel-iglesias/if-you-surround-yourself-with-a-bunch-of-guys-who-no-mas-se-quieren/) [Gabriel Iglesias](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gabriel-iglesias/) > [I'm going to slow down a little bit, but I won't stop creating. I can't!](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/brian-pinkerton/i-m-going-to-slow-down-a-little-bit-but-i-won-t-stop-creating-i-can-t/) [Brian Pinkerton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/brian-pinkerton/) > [“Keep going even when the going is slow and uncertain. Make your dream your prayer and your service. Don’t wait for recognition. Let it…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/g-g-renee-hill/keep-going-even-when-the-going-is-slow-and-uncertain-make-your-dream/) [G.G. Renee Hill](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/g-g-renee-hill/) ## More by Pico Iyer > [ \[The Dalai Lama\] told me some years ago, "I've made every concession to China, and I've been as open and tolerant as I could,… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pico-iyer/the-dalai-lama-told-me-some-years-ago-i-ve-made-every-concession-to/) [Pico Iyer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pico-iyer/) > [For citizens who think themselves puppets in the hands of their rulers, nothing is more satisfying than having rulers as puppets in their hands.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pico-iyer/for-citizens-who-think-themselves-puppets-in-the-hands-of-their/) [Pico Iyer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pico-iyer/) > [The Dalai Lama would say that meditation is something that can help everyone. But he's aware that it can be misused or things can…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pico-iyer/the-dalai-lama-would-say-that-meditation-is-something-that-can-help/) [Pico Iyer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pico-iyer/) > [Like any traveler, I'm always looking for those experiences that are almost unique to any place, and watching films around Alaska of the skies…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pico-iyer/like-any-traveler-i-m-always-looking-for-those-experiences-that-are/) [Pico Iyer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pico-iyer/) > [“When you're hurrying around too quickly," he had said, "there's a part of the world you can't see. If, for example, you're taking a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pico-iyer/when-you-re-hurrying-around-too-quickly-he-had-said-there-s-a-part-of/) [Pico Iyer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pico-iyer/) > [We travel to open our hearts and eyes and learn more about the world than our newspapers will accommodate.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pico-iyer/we-travel-to-open-our-hearts-and-eyes-and-learn-more-about-the-world/) [Pico Iyer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pico-iyer/) > [The Dalai Lama, these days, encourages Westerners not to take up Buddhism, partly because he feels that our roots are deep in other traditions,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pico-iyer/the-dalai-lama-these-days-encourages-westerners-not-to-take-up/) [Pico Iyer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pico-iyer/) > [And if travel is like love, it is, in the end, mostly because it's a heightened state of awareness, in which we are mindful,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pico-iyer/and-if-travel-is-like-love-it-is-in-the-end-mostly-because-it-s-a/) [Pico Iyer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pico-iyer/) > [As soon as I began to talk to Dalai Lama, I realized that Chinese and Tibetans from his point of view are mostly the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pico-iyer/as-soon-as-i-began-to-talk-to-dalai-lama-i-realized-that-chinese-and/) [Pico Iyer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pico-iyer/) > [When we are kids, we imagine that to define ourselves or to find ourselves means charting your own individuality, making your own destiny, and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pico-iyer/when-we-are-kids-we-imagine-that-to-define-ourselves-or-to-find/) [Pico Iyer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pico-iyer/) > [A writer is a palmist, reading the lines of the planet.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pico-iyer/a-writer-is-a-palmist-reading-the-lines-of-the-planet/) [Pico Iyer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pico-iyer/) > [In barely one generation, we've moved from exulting in the time-saving devices that have so expanded our lives to trying to get away from…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pico-iyer/in-barely-one-generation-we-ve-moved-from-exulting-in-the-time-saving/) [Pico Iyer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pico-iyer/) > [For centuries, Cubas greatest resource has been its people.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pico-iyer/for-centuries-cubas-greatest-resource-has-been-its-people/) [Pico Iyer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pico-iyer/) > [Writing is, in the end, that oddest of anomalies: an intimate letter to a stranger.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pico-iyer/writing-is-in-the-end-that-oddest-of-anomalies-an-intimate-letter-to/) [Pico Iyer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pico-iyer/) > [“Was it only through another that I could begin to get at myself?”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pico-iyer/was-it-only-through-another-that-i-could-begin-to-get-at-myself/) [Pico Iyer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pico-iyer/) [Explore all 266 Pico Iyer quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pico-iyer/) ## More Acceleration quotes > [Emphasis was usually put on the horizontal acceleration factor, for the simple reason that ordinary structures have a built-in safety factor for the vertical…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charles-francis-richter/emphasis-was-usually-put-on-the-horizontal-acceleration-factor-for/) [Charles Francis Richter](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charles-francis-richter/) > [Music. A meaningless acceleration in the rhythm of celestial experience.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/music-a-meaningless-acceleration-in-the-rhythm-of-celestial-experience/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [Looking to the future I see in the further acceleration of science continuous jobs for our workers. Science will cure unemployment.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charles-m-schwab/looking-to-the-future-i-see-in-the-further-acceleration-of-science/) [Charles M. Schwab](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charles-m-schwab/) > [Car love is the sound of a throaty V-8 rumbling and revving, the acceleration throwing you back in the seat - especially when you…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-lasseter/car-love-is-the-sound-of-a-throaty-v-8-rumbling-and-revving-the/) [John Lasseter](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-lasseter/) > [If you look at the whole package, with everything Henry has, I don't think you can find that anywhere else. You give him the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dennis-bergkamp/if-you-look-at-the-whole-package-with-everything-henry-has-i-don-t/) [Dennis Bergkamp](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dennis-bergkamp/) > [Things are both getting better and getting worse. The madness is accelerating but an acceleration of the new consciousness is also coming in. However,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eckhart-tolle/things-are-both-getting-better-and-getting-worse-the-madness-is/) [Eckhart Tolle](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eckhart-tolle/) > [Evolution usually occurs in response to a crisis situation, and we now are faced with such a crisis situation. This is why there is…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eckhart-tolle/evolution-usually-occurs-in-response-to-a-crisis-situation-and-we-now/) [Eckhart Tolle](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eckhart-tolle/) > [Satisfaction, for us, is only a brief thing. The man who acquires wealth does not reach a point where he has enough. Success for…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/neal-asher/satisfaction-for-us-is-only-a-brief-thing-the-man-who-acquires-wealth/) [Neal Asher](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/neal-asher/) > [It is not enough for theory to describe and analyze, it must itself be an event in the universe it describes.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jean-baudrillard/it-is-not-enough-for-theory-to-describe-and-analyze-it-must-itself-be/) [Jean Baudrillard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jean-baudrillard/) > [As seismologists gained more experience from earthquake records, it became obvious that the problem could not be reduced to a single peak acceleration. In…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charles-francis-richter/as-seismologists-gained-more-experience-from-earthquake-records-it/) [Charles Francis Richter](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charles-francis-richter/) > [To tell the truth, in Pacific 231 I was on the trail of a very abstract and quite ideal concept, by giving the impression…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/arthur-honegger/to-tell-the-truth-in-pacific-231-i-was-on-the-trail-of-a-very/) [Arthur Honegger](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/arthur-honegger/) > [Generating ideas is not a problem. Incubation is. Acceleration is.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rita-gunther-mcgrath/generating-ideas-is-not-a-problem-incubation-is-acceleration-is/) Rita Gunther McGrath > [The Strandbeest is a self-replicating meme, a brain virus. It infects the student's brain. In fact, the Strandbeest abuse students for their reproduction. For…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/theo-jansen/the-strandbeest-is-a-self-replicating-meme-a-brain-virus-it-infects/) [Theo Jansen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/theo-jansen/) > [“The same thrust, pushing against a greatly reduced burden, would then yield acceleration that Lio had cheerfully described as 'near-fatal.' 'But it's okay,' he'd…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/neal-stephenson/the-same-thrust-pushing-against-a-greatly-reduced-burden-would-then/) [Neal Stephenson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/neal-stephenson/) > [Thematically, most of my work deals with transition, our culture's constant acceleration, and emotional connection and disconnection through technology.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marco-brambilla/thematically-most-of-my-work-deals-with-transition-our-culture-s/) [Marco Brambilla](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marco-brambilla/) Browse all 73 Acceleration quotes ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "“In an age of acceleration, nothing can be more exhilarating than going slow. And in an age of distraction, nothing is so luxurious as paying attention. 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