That is generally a tough thing to do and it certainly depends on your situations ... here is my 2 cents.
If I am fishing someplace where I am familiar with the waters I tend to power my way through somehow to get some type of a reaction strike. My favorite lure right now is a chatterbait. If I can get a bump or bite on that I then know the area is good for picking through for more fish. At that point it is a little easier to slow down because there is a degree of confidence that there are fish there to be caught.
Now if I am in unfamiliar waters OR fishing fast and not producing at all I tend to start by downsizing my presentation BUT still try to cover water. For me the finesse swimbait, finesse carolina rig over good looking "stuff" (weeds, rock, timber etc.) gets the nod. If I get a bite then, again, it's easier to slow down to a senko or something else because you have the confidence there are fish to be caught in that general area.
If that STILL doesn't produce then it's true finesse time and my go-to for that is the mojo rig, drop shot and wacky senko. This is where I tend to slow myself down quite considerably ... What I do might sound cheesy but it works ....
If I feel like I am not fishing slow enough then I begin using a counting method to make sure I slow myself and the lure down. I will use my mojo rig over weeds for an example.
I will cast it out, let it sink and take out the slack and make sure your rod tip is at the 2 or 3 o'clock position. Count to 5 (or 10 for real slow). Raise the tip up to 12. Reel in the slack and repeat the counting. If you do this right one cast can last up to a minute or so each. I find concentrating on the process helps me forget how d**n slow I am fishing.
This technique has surprised me more than once so I believe in it. Good luck.
