I’ve shared about The Science of Well-Being Coursera at length, but some of the topics that class covered need some deeper exploration. Savoring is one of them. We usually think about savoring in relation to food – taking our time eating and really tasting it. But did you know you can use savoring in your day-to-day live to create experiences? So let’s talk about what savoring can do for you, how to do it, and how not to do it.
What Savoring Can Do For You
To entice you to try savoring to create experiences, let’s talk a little bit about the advantages of employing this mental activity. When you savor – that is, take a moment to appreciate an experience as it’s happening – two things happen. First, you are more mindful of the experience. You harness your attention and avoid getting distracted from whatever it is that you’re enjoying. Secondly, by focusing on the experience you’re having, you delay hedonic adaptation. That is, you enjoy it for longer.
But the cool thing about savoring is that you can savor ANYTHING. And I don’t know about you, but I’ve spent a lot of time in the past year trying to find ways to enjoy the mundane. Savoring is how you can change your normal weekday meals into a fun event. It’s a way to enjoy the outcome of your chores more. And someday, when we’ve found a new sense of post-COVID normal, savoring is how you will boost enjoyment of the things that you’ve been missing for the past year or so.
How to Savor
Now, how do you savor to create an experience? It’s pretty simple, and as you read through the ways to employ savoring, you might realize that some of these practices are second-nature to you!
When you want to savor a moment, you should…
…talk to someone about how good it felt.
…look to find someone to share it with.
…think about how lucky you are.
…think about sharing it later with others.
…express your energy physically (jump around, clap your hands, do a happy dance!).
…laugh or giggle about it.
…tell yourself how proud you are to have experienced it.
…think only of the present and be absorbed in the moment.
Savoring works for so much more than just food, but I find photos of models acting like they’re eating hilarious, so here you go.
How to NOT Savor
There are ways that you can thwart your efforts to savor a moment. Some of these might be deeply-ingrained habits (especially if you’re hoping to savor your own accomplishments), so watch out for them!
When you want to savor a moment, you should NOT…
…focus on the future
…remind yourself it’ll be over soon
…think, “It’s not as good as I hoped.”
…think, “Nothing lasts forever.”
…think, “It’ll never be this good again.”
…imagine how it could be better.
…think, “I don’t deserve this.”
Notice how many of these things involve your thoughts? When you’re savoring, you should be focusing on what you’re doing. Enjoy it. Sink into the experience. Resist comparison or judgement. Make like Nike and just do it.
A Parting Thought
I don’t think you can overuse the practice of savoring. And in fact, it probably gets easier the more you do it. So take some time and consider your life. What small things do you do every day that could you savor? How can you employ savoring to create remarkable experiences every day?
