Rushing can be such a default state for me that I sometimes don’t realise that I’m in it. I still have days that I have to bring repeated awareness to my rushing. Recognising rushing does diminish the intensity of the feeling to some degree.
If you pay close attention you’ll also notice that feeling rushed is a little contagious. Think about being stuck in traffic even when you’re not late. You still feel rushed. Also, rushing implies that there is some end destination to get to. I don’t like that mentality. Here’s a related post.
Bottom line, I don’t like feeling rushed. I think that’s true for most people, but for me feeling rushed doesn’t actually get me to perform at my best. Also, rushing puts all my attention on finishing the task rather than doing the task. For example, earlier I was writing this post in my head while making tea in the kitchen. I was stuck in some sentence loop when I went back to my computer. Halfway out of the kitchen I realised that I’d forgotten my tea on the counter. This is a perfect example of how thoughts can syphon off our attention. Attention that is arguably better used by focusing on what is right in front of us.
So, I find it important to recognise rushing through out my day. I pause and ask myself: Where am I trying to get to? And: Will I even get there faster if I rush? Probably not.