The Gentle Rewind

My day always begins early.

This morning, as I sat to write in my journal, I tried something a little different.

So, I sat quietly… and replayed yesterday in my mind’s eye.

I slowed down, even more unhurried, with no sense of rush. And as I did, it felt like watching an old video on rewind. Scene by scene in full colour.

I watched myself.
Where I was.
Who I was with.
What I said.

And how I showed up in each moment.

And something interesting happened.

I began to notice not just what I did… but how I was.

Was I present… or just physically there?
Was I listening… or waiting for my turn to speak?
Was I calm… or quietly hurrying the moment along?

There were moments I liked. Times when I was fully there, engaged, listening, unhurried.

And there were others…

Moments where I could see the subtle rush.
A hint of impatience.
Divided attention.
Tiredness creeping in.
Nothing dramatic.

Just small, human moments.

But really seeing them and properly noticing them, somehow felt different.

There was no harsh judgement.
Just a gentle awareness.

“Did you notice that moment?”
“That’s where you were trying.”
“That’s where you could slow down.”

Those quiet observations changed everything.

I found myself asking a simple question as I watched it back:
How did I really show up yesterday?

I realised how rarely I give myself the space to truly see my day.
Not just skim it… but revisit it, unhurried.

Because the truth is, most of leadership – and most of life – isn’t made up of big moments.

It’s made up of small ones, including conversations, glances, pauses, interruptions, fatigue, kindness.

And somewhere in the middle of all that… is who we are becoming.

Slowing down long enough to notice it might be one of the most important leadership practices we develop.

Why not give it a go?

If you were to quietly rewind your day, what might you see that you didn’t notice the first time?