Growing Slow


Book Description

Enter a simpler way of living by unhurrying your heart, embracing the relaxed rhythms of nature, and discovering the meaningful gift of growing slow. We long to make a break from the fast pace of life, but if we're honest, we're afraid of what we'll miss if we do. Yet when going big and hustling hard leaves us stressed, empty, and out of sorts, perhaps this can be our cue to step into a far more satisfying, sustainable pace. In this crafted, inspiring read, beloved author Jennifer Dukes Lee offers a path to unhurried living by returning to the rhythm of the land and learning the ancient art of Growing Slow. Jennifer was once at breaking point herself, and tells her story of rude awakening to the ways her chosen lifestyle of running hard, scaling fast, and the neverending chase for results was taking a toll on her body, heart, and soul. But when she finally gave herself permission to believe it takes time to grow good things, she found a new kind of freedom. With eloquent truths and vivid storytelling, Jennifer reflects on the lessons she learned from living on her fifth-generation family farm and the insights she gathered from the purposeful yet never rushed life of Christ. Growing Slow charts a path out of the pressures of bigger, harder, faster, and into a more rooted way of living where the growth of good things is deep and lasting. Following the rhythms of the natural growing season, Growing Slow will help you: Find the true relief that comes when you stop running and start resting in Jesus Learn practices for unhurrying your heart and mind every day Let go of the pressure and embrace the small, good things already bearing fruit in your life And engage slow growth through reflection prompts and simple application steps




Go Slow to Grow Fast


Book Description

How To Maintain Positive Performance Through Your Company's Ups And Downs In this book, author Brent R. Tilson brings to life the classic challenge that all business leaders face as they push their businesses through the conflict of growth and business capability, often referred to as the S-curve life cycle. Through a fable drawn from his work with hundreds of businesses over twenty-five years of experience, he creates a case study that will take you, along with the characters Frank and Susan, on a journey of self-discovery. The practical tools, methodologies, and advice are thought provoking yet simple. Brent's innovative use of a business's "Lifeline," combined with his "Quad 4" methodology, helps leaders gain an understanding of how their business is performing today, and creates a road map for the future. Financial statements give leaders only a rearview-mirror look at a company's performance. The key is to have the information to look forward--through the "dashboard" showing where the company is going. In this book, Brent presents tools for leaders to zero in on the critical numbers and measurements they need to monitor. Some of the key issues he addresses are: -Is the company in the Driving Zone or Drama Zone? -Is revenue per employee growing? -What is the return on investment the company is getting from its employees? - What will put the company out of business? -Is the company outperforming the competition? The key is to Go Slow and truly understand the business's current capability; then you can make the necessary changes, adjustments, and improvements to prepare for the future--and get ready to Grow Fast.




Fully Grown


Book Description

Vollrath challenges our long-held assumption that growth is the best indicator of an economy’s health. Most economists would agree that a thriving economy is synonymous with GDP growth. The more we produce and consume, the higher our living standard and the more resources available to the public. This means that our current era, in which growth has slowed substantially from its postwar highs, has raised alarm bells. But should it? Is growth actually the best way to measure economic success—and does our slowdown indicate economic problems? The counterintuitive answer Dietrich Vollrath offers is: No. Looking at the same facts as other economists, he offers a radically different interpretation. Rather than a sign of economic failure, he argues, our current slowdown is, in fact, a sign of our widespread economic success. Our powerful economy has already supplied so much of the necessary stuff of modern life, brought us so much comfort, security, and luxury, that we have turned to new forms of production and consumption that increase our well-being but do not contribute to growth in GDP. In Fully Grown, Vollrath offers a powerful case to support that argument. He explores a number of important trends in the US economy: including a decrease in the number of workers relative to the population, a shift from a goods-driven economy to a services-driven one, and a decline in geographic mobility. In each case, he shows how their economic effects could be read as a sign of success, even though they each act as a brake of GDP growth. He also reveals what growth measurement can and cannot tell us—which factors are rightly correlated with economic success, which tell us nothing about significant changes in the economy, and which fall into a conspicuously gray area. Sure to be controversial, Fully Grown will reset the terms of economic debate and help us think anew about what a successful economy looks like.




Slow Church


Book Description

In today's fast-food world, Christianity can seem outdated or archaic. The temptation becomes to pick up the pace and play the game. But Chris Smith and John Pattison invites us to leave franchise faith behind and enter the kingdom of God, where people know each other well and love one another as Christ loves the church.




Slow Growth Equals Strong Roots


Book Description

You know her. Maybe you are her. The Most Put-Together Woman in the Room. Make no mistake, she never feels the most put-together. And she doesn't do it to make anyone else feel small. She walks in without a hair out of place, always delivering an A+ performance and relentlessly hard on herself, because she feels like that is the minimum standard she has to achieve just to be welcome in most rooms. Just to be invited to most tables. You would never know by looking at her the hard things she's had to overcome in her life. She succeeds, almost compulsively, in this urgent attempt to outrun her own muddy story. But she is walking around now, reduced to this burned-out, brittle, fragile, ashes-to-ashes version of herself. She is, at last, exhausted. When gold stars, highlight reels, and seeking approval from strangers are not enough, Mary Marantz assures you that you're already worthy and gives you permission to stop running. In this powerful, life-giving devotional filled with stunning photography and design, she shows you how to move from achieving, striving, and performing for your worth to the grace, freedom, and purpose that come from knowing that your identity and calling are determined by God. You are not in a race with anyone. Good things take time. And slow growth equals strong roots.




Slow Flowers


Book Description

First there was "slow food." Now there's "slow flowers," local and fresh: no chemical-laden, lifeless blooms flown in from afar. Acclaimed garden writer Debra Prinzing wants to show us the rich, floral bounty closer to home. In Slow Flowers, she takes us through the seasons to create 52 vibrant, sensual bouquets using only locally sourced materials - even in winter.--




Financing Our Foodshed


Book Description

“[Hewitt] paints an engaging portrait of a community learning how to take care of its own, and offers inspiration for others looking to do the same.” —Amy Cortese, author of Locavesting In towns and cities across North America, a quiet revolution is underway. Fed up with sending their money off to make a fast buck in faraway markets, people are putting their money to work where they live, in markets they trust and understand—starting with food. Financing Our Foodshed is a collection of real-life stories of these Slow Money pioneers and the local food entrepreneurs—sustainable farmers, bakers, restaurateurs, and more—they have chosen to support. Fueled by their desire to do more than just eat local food, lenders of “nurture capital” are making low-interest, peer-to-peer loans to the people who produce, process, distribute and sell local food. Meet these passionate food entrepreneurs like: Abi, talented artist-turned-baker, who borrowed the funds to start a gluten-free bakery Angelina, owner of a Greek local foods restaurant, who refinanced exorbitant credit card debt incurred by renovations Chatham Marketplace, a much-loved grocery co-op whose monthly loan payments were reduced by a third, thanks to an ambitious collaboration between 16 investors Financing Our Foodshed tells the compelling stories of ordinary people doing something extraordinary, and will appeal to anyone who understands the critical importance of sustainably grown local food and resilient local economies, and wants a blueprint to get us there. “For anyone seriously interested in boosting his or her community’s economy—including politicians, policymakers, financiers, businesspeople, and activists—this book is essential reading.” —Michael H. Shuman, author of Put Your Money Where Your Life Is




Fast Growing Firms in a Slow Growth Economy


Book Description

Europe needs more innovative companies that grow quickly and end up big. This book examines SME growth, innovation and success, to suggest that fast growing firms could offer a major contribution to the recovery of a European economy. The contributors examine 11 case studies from Italian firms, breaking the book up into three parts: context, actors and strategy. The topics discussed include entrepreneurship and technological clusters, innovative start-ups and growth factors, and family firms as the incubators of new ventures.




In Praise of Slowness


Book Description

We live in the age of speed. We strain to be more efficient, to cram more into each minute, each hour, each day. Since the Industrial Revolution shifted the world into high gear, the cult of speed has pushed us to a breaking point. Consider these facts: Americans on average spend seventy-two minutes of every day behind the wheel of a car, a typical business executive now loses sixty-eight hours a year to being put on hold, and American adults currently devote on average a mere half hour per week to making love. Living on the edge of exhaustion, we are constantly reminded by our bodies and minds that the pace of life is spinning out of control. In Praise of Slowness traces the history of our increasingly breathless relationship with time and tackles the consequences of living in this accelerated culture of our own creation. Why are we always in such a rush? What is the cure for time sickness? Is it possible, or even desirable, to slow down? Realizing the price we pay for unrelenting speed, people all over the world are reclaiming their time and slowing down the pace -- and living happier, healthier, and more productive lives as a result. A Slow revolution is taking place. Here you will find no Luddite calls to overthrow technology and seek a preindustrial utopia. This is a modern revolution, championed by cell-phone using, e-mailing lovers of sanity. The Slow philosophy can be summed up in a single word -- balance. People are discovering energy and efficiency where they may have been least expected -- in slowing down. In this engaging and entertaining exploration, award-winning journalist and rehabilitated speedaholic Carl Honoré details our perennial love affair with efficiency and speed in a perfect blend of anecdotal reportage, history, and intellectual inquiry. In Praise of Slowness is the first comprehensive look at the worldwide Slow movements making their way into the mainstream -- in offices, factories, neighborhoods, kitchens, hospitals, concert halls, bedrooms, gyms, and schools. Defining a movement that is here to stay, this spirited manifesto will make you completely rethink your relationship with time.




Slow Down and Grow Something


Book Description

Backyards, rooftops, courtyards and balconies are sprouting with herbs, ballooning with fruit and bursting with veggies across our urban landscapes. Slowly but surely people are embracing the joy of gardening, and the more relaxed lifestyle it brings. If the 24-hour social media cycle and fast-paced working week is dulling your shine, Slow Down and Grow Something is your doorway into the completely addictive world of urban growing, where you can pocket a slice of country life in the city, even if just for a few minutes a day. Growing your own mint for a mojito or rhubarb to make jam isn't just about producing food, rewarding as it is. It's an antidote to the relentless pursuit to 'do it all'. It doesn't matter the size of your space, or your skill, the garden is a place for anyone and everyone. Expert horticulturalist Byron Smith has created urban food oasis in even the tiniest of plots and, in this book, Byron and partner Tess Robinson give you the know-how to grow your favourite ingredients, and amazing recipes to make the most of your harvest from lemon, courgette and rosemary cake and potato, sage and pecorino tarts to cucumber and ginger smoothie and English spinach and chive pancakes. So tuck this book under your arm and grab a drink – the time to slow down and grow is now. The good life is waiting for you.