Change is Good…
We are living in unprecedented times. Like 9/11 and the great recession of 2008, the period in which we are now living has never been experienced before. While periods of great upheaval can be very distressing, there is usually always good that comes through change, if you are willing to look for it.
I believe that we are now living in a period that is fundamentally changing the way people work and learn. In this week’s blog, I want to lean into the “learn” part of that idea. By taking advantage of the technology available to us today, we are staying connected through zoom calls. Members of our family are at home working remotely and we’re home schooling our children or grandchildren.
There’s no question that in person gatherings provide a level of connection and community that zoom cannot replace. And I’m hopeful that gatherings, at least small ones, will become available soon as the country reopens slowly and safely. Nevertheless, waiting around and hoping that we’ll return to some form of “normal” seems unlikely. Now’s the time to lean into the things we’ve been avoiding or the things that have always been on the back burner. My tag line is: It’s Never Too Late To Create, which is true. But don’t wait too long. This current crisis is showing us all that life is short. Now’s the time to get going on those dreams and make them a reality!
In my online course, The Pattern Design Academy, and in my coaching practice, I’m finding again and again that mindset, and how we think about issues, is really at the core of how we’ll react and how we’ll decide to move forward.
I listened to Michael Hyatt’s podcast, Lead to Win, this morning called: How to Adjust to the New Normal and in it, he asks these three questions:
1. What are things that you’ve started doing during the pandemic that you’ll continue to do in the future?
2. What are things that you are no longer doing and don’t plan to restart?
3. What does the new reality make possible?
As an eternal optimist, and someone who has been forced to manage through change whether I wanted to or not, I’d like to focus on that last question and how mindset in particular is key to how you respond to it.
A little background about me. My family moved to Europe when I was eight. We landed in Brussels first and I was not happy about it. Belgians speak French but there is a portion of the population that speaks Flemish. Since I was unhappy and obstinate, I refused to learn French and learned Flemish instead, even though the entire school curriculum was taught in French.
Fast forward to several years ago when I got laid off from my fancy corporate job at 55. Obstinate as always, I tried for 3 years to get another corporate job without success. Finally, I woke up and decided it was time to explore my creativity because landing another corporate job was just not going to happen. I fought the change but now I’m happier than I’ve ever been running my own online business as a surface pattern designer and online educator.
I share those stories with you because I didn’t have the right mindset to see those times through the lens of: What does this change make possible for me?
Before you can even think about the future, it’s very important to recognize how you are feeling about it. Are you scared and apprehensive? Or are you excited and open to the possibilities?
To paraphrase Michael: “Only you can change your perspective and it all starts with exploring your mindset.”
If you think about it, times of great change lead to amazing new inventions. Here are just some of the new things we’re all learning to do right now:
· Curbside pickup at local restaurants
· More home delivery services beyond just Amazon
· Zoom calls with our families – maybe connecting even more now than in the past
· Access to learning – either free or paid depending on your need for efficiency and structure
· Working remotely – saving all that commute time, traffic snares, and pollution
The future right now has not yet been written. We have the opportunity to design it for ourselves. It’s really a blank slate. Take the time to think about what you want your personal future to look like. Are you ready to start a creative business? Are you ready to pivot your existing creative business to serve your customers differently based on the new reality? There are so many opportunities for good to come from this time of great change. Let’s lean into that, shall we?
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Remember,
It’s Never Too Late to Create
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MEET ANNE
Hi…I’m Anne!
My creative inspiration comes from a lifetime of observation. I grew up in Paris on the Place St. Sulpice and walked to school through the Luxembourg gardens. And that was only the beginning… Learn more by watching the video on my About page.
