12/07/2026
Does it feel like time is flying by? There is a very good reason for this and an easy way to fix it.
Time speeds up because our brains estimate time by tracking change and forming memories. As life becomes more routine, the brain encodes fewer novel memories. In hindsight, a year of repetitive days feels much shorter because there are fewer distinct events for the brain to recallCognitive neuroscience experts explain that our brains don’t actually perceive a “time particle”; instead, we calculate time by how much happens and how we pay attention to it.
In childhood, everything is new, creating rich, vivid memories that make periods seem to last longer. As we age, daily life becomes more routine. When we look back, the lack of distinct, new memories makes the months and years feel like they vanished in the blink of an eye.
The easiest way to fix this is to break up the routine. Small simple changes can have a huge effect.
It can be something as simple as drinking your morning coffee in the garden and really tasting it while listening to the birds sing, making your breakfast to go and going somewhere nice to eat it, giving yourself the permission to pause, take a different route to work or challenge yourself to notice 3 things on your commute that you didn’t notice before, make a meal with a vegetable or ingredient you’ve never used before or anything that forces you to be immersed and mindful in the moment works.
When you stop and pause you realise that the real magic is to be found in those small moments.
Usually on a Sunday morning I have a sauna The Nook before I start work but I didn’t book my spot in time ( it’s a very popular slot) so instead I had an early morning swim and breakfast by the lake - pure magic!
