The new reality stings...but that's not always a bad thing
One of the things I've found very interesting about the commentary I've read/seen regarding the new socio-political-economic environment in America is that people are, more and more, seeing the natural cycles in which all of these aspects flow. Because these cycles move relatively slowly, and often in very minute ways, we don't always notice them unless we stick around long enough to actually see them, but once the wheel starts to turn in a pretty huge and noticable way, at a point where we can actually recognize them, it's interesting to listen to people's observations of them.
Rather than becoming all doomy-and-gloomy, lots of people, once they recognize the naturalness of these cycles, not only become less anxious about them, but also begin to see ways in which these apparent hardships can be turned to one's advantage.
It isn't easy to consider ways in which one can think differently about their careers. It isn't easy to think about how a box on your desk and a door slamming behind you could actually be the best thing that ever happens to you. But these natural cycles, and the people who rise to the challenge of using the downturn to advantage, are the very things that create a new economy, and a new way of approaching work, and a new spirit of entreprenurship in the very midst of the disintegrating old order.
They are, in fact, the reason that the economy grows.
Like these guys.
Of course, like anything in life, it's about choice, and perception, and flexibility. And there are some people, like this couple (and this woman in particular, I think--she seems to be the real issue in this train wreck) who, because of their unwillingness to look at their lives differently, and to embrace the challenges put before them, and accept the new demands that life sometimes presents, who will fail. Who will not walk away from these hardships, which are temporary, without permanent damage to their lives, their relationships, their families and their careers.
And the thing that's remarkable is that the difference between success and failure is perception. Is this new thing a challenge, or is this new thing a hardship? Am I willing to embrace the changes in life, or am I going to stubbornly hold on to my old ideas and be broken by life? Am I going to face these changes with compassion for those I love, or am I going to become bitter and resentful, and show contempt for my loved ones, blaming them for the challenges that life itself, not they, presented to me?
Am I going to come away from these challenges more whole, more fulfilled, happier and closer to my loved ones, or am I prepared to lose everything in an effort to have my own way, forever?
As I said--this whole thing, and what it has revealed about people, has been very interesting.
Rather than becoming all doomy-and-gloomy, lots of people, once they recognize the naturalness of these cycles, not only become less anxious about them, but also begin to see ways in which these apparent hardships can be turned to one's advantage.
It isn't easy to consider ways in which one can think differently about their careers. It isn't easy to think about how a box on your desk and a door slamming behind you could actually be the best thing that ever happens to you. But these natural cycles, and the people who rise to the challenge of using the downturn to advantage, are the very things that create a new economy, and a new way of approaching work, and a new spirit of entreprenurship in the very midst of the disintegrating old order.
They are, in fact, the reason that the economy grows.
Like these guys.
Of course, like anything in life, it's about choice, and perception, and flexibility. And there are some people, like this couple (and this woman in particular, I think--she seems to be the real issue in this train wreck) who, because of their unwillingness to look at their lives differently, and to embrace the challenges put before them, and accept the new demands that life sometimes presents, who will fail. Who will not walk away from these hardships, which are temporary, without permanent damage to their lives, their relationships, their families and their careers.
And the thing that's remarkable is that the difference between success and failure is perception. Is this new thing a challenge, or is this new thing a hardship? Am I willing to embrace the changes in life, or am I going to stubbornly hold on to my old ideas and be broken by life? Am I going to face these changes with compassion for those I love, or am I going to become bitter and resentful, and show contempt for my loved ones, blaming them for the challenges that life itself, not they, presented to me?
Am I going to come away from these challenges more whole, more fulfilled, happier and closer to my loved ones, or am I prepared to lose everything in an effort to have my own way, forever?
As I said--this whole thing, and what it has revealed about people, has been very interesting.