 | The New Normal |
A lot of people seem to be waiting for things to get back to normal. I wonder what they really mean. Do they really believe one day in the future things will get back to the way they have been in the past? I think there are several things wrong with that thought process.
To begin with, staying fixed upon the past is a failed strategy for the future. Things simply will not be the same in the future as they have been in the past. Even if there are some similarities, things are not the same. Change is our constant. People change. Communities change. Families change. Organizations change. Our challenge is to engage change in our present in order to produce a positive and productive future. The normal we produce in the future will be our new normal but it won’t be the same as the normal we have created in the past. Reading Spencer Johnson’s new book, Peaks and Valleys, would be a great focus for the time.
I think it is also important to be careful with our expectations. Anytime there is a problem in relationships you can always know that it goes back to the challenge of expectations. Someone is expecting something they are not getting and so there is both disappointment and depression in the relationship as a result. The same can happen in our relationship to the future. When we expect something that is not based in reality we are building disappointment and depression into our future. Expecting to have a new normal with new challenges and new opportunities is based in reality. Change is something that can be engaged positively with great hope.
I also believe the thought of waiting somewhat passively for things to get back to normal is a form of escape. People simply do not want to engage the conflict changes represents. When asked to discuss their approach to conflict and change most people will say that it is something they want to avoid, and many times it is something they will actively resist. Conflict is not something that can be successfully avoided. Life is filled with conflict. To seek to avoid it is, in reality, a journey into the avoidance of life itself. The Chinese see conflict quite differently to those of us who live in the West. In the Chinese language, a synonym for conflict is opportunity. So, if we were to make use of that style of thinking our approach in the West would be to avoid opportunity. None of us would choose that course if we really understood what we were saying. Creating our new normal is really an exciting opportunity we need to actively and anxiously engage with enthusiasm and energy.
It is important to stay positive while at the same time plugged into the reality we face. In the past two years, the world in which we live has changed significantly. We have experienced and fought through one of the most challenging economic dilemmas ever created by any people at any time. As a result, our entire framework of government and world economics has shifted. It is not negative to be realistic. Reading Geoff Colvin’s new book, The Upside of the Downturn, would be an excellent exercise in preparing for a prepared and purposed response to the future. People have become more conservative in their response to life. Financial institutions have adjusted their strategies as well. Discretionary spending has been redefined for some and defined for the first time by others. Response to the consumer of tomorrow will require a different thought process and a different delivery system. It is essential that preparation for tomorrow begins now. Choices we are making today are already influencing the kind of normal we will be experiencing tomorrow.
So, what are we waiting for really? There really is no time to wait. There are choices that need to be made even as response is made positively to the challenges of the present. Yesterday’s normal is gone. Today is our reality. Tomorrow will be opportunity to create and define a new normal. Don’t wait. Create.
Allen Tappe is the owner and president of The Tappe Group. He is a professional speaker, trainer, and coach whose mission is to equip people with the skills and knowledge necessary to achieve the success they choose to pursue. His style is interactive and listener friendly while his message is challenging and inspiring. Tappe is a member of the National Speaker's Association and has been featured as the keynote speaker for various conventions and workshops. Tappe is the creator of Purposed Performance, an operating system for personal performance, growth, and development. The anchor message of Purposed Performance that Tappe consistently teaches to all audiences is that an individual must "cross the line" from the bondage of being a victim to the freedom of being a purposed performer in order to achieve any real life success. Tappe provides valuable strategy and useful tools to help individuals make that vital choice. Tappe explains the Purposed Performance operating system in his two books, "The Power of Purposed Performance" and "Selling Real Estate on Purpose". For the past twelve years, Tappe has worked with over 40 different industries and professions, addressing challenges ranging from cultural development and communications to sales and customer service. He has worked with a diverse client base that includes doctors and lawyers, as well as teachers and accountants. He has worked with technology specialists, along with corporate executives. His diverse background allows him to relate to people right where they live and work. Tappe began his professional career as a collegiate tennis champion, then later became a winning collegiate coach. His background includes mortgage banking, counseling and ministry, real estate, sales training and management. He is a graduate of Abilene Christian University. He has been married to Barbara Tappe for the past 34 years. He is the father of three beautiful daughters and has two exceptional grandchildren. You can learn more about his by visiting his website www.tappegroup.com or by emailing him at allen@tappegroup.com