Still Waiting for Normal to Return? How About Something Better?

Are you still waiting for everything to return to normal? It might be a long wait, you know. But in the past couple of weeks, I’ve seen a new twist emerging…

Meet Your “I’m Never Going Back’s!”

We are all going through a transition right now. It’s time to ask ourselves, “Do we want to go back to life as it was before?” And if the answer is no, then we have an opportunity to design a new life.”

— Greg McKeown, author of Essentialism

For so long, the question has been, “When are things going to get back to normal?”

Even before COVID, normal felt like a moving target.

That didn’t matter. We couldn’t wait to get back to whatever we thought normal was.

So let me ask you this. What is something new for you that came out of the past twenty or so months that you wouldn’t want to give up? Go ahead, think about it. Take a little time and give it some honest thought.

I mean no disrespect to the obvious losses and misfortunes of the pandemic.  

Most of us have something that we wouldn’t want to give up.

We may not have even realized it yet… or even given it much more than a passing thought.

Of course, there are varying degrees of “going back,” especially when given a choice… from, “I wouldn’t go back” to, “I wouldn’t even want to go back,” and “I would never go back.”

The point is, your “wouldn’t go back to” might be something big, and it might be something small like a newfound appreciation, awareness, or discovery.

Change doesn’t always look like change. Sometimes change is simply being given permission to do things differently.”

— Jason Feifer, editor at Entrepreneur magazine

Need some good ideas for never go back tos? Just to get your wheels turning…

• The old definitions of what’s possible and what’s not (so much has been proven wrong)
• Your hour-plus commute
• The old you (yes, you’re better than you were)
• Everyone else’s priorities (give this one some extra thought)

For some things, it’s easier to think in terms of what’s better now… Just read it backwards to see it as a never go back to…

• Working fewer hours (I won’t tell anyone)
• Treating yourself better
• Midday runs, walks, or bike rides
• Getting closer to family and friends
• Pursuing new past times and finally going after that something you’ve been putting off
• Becoming more flexible and adaptable
• Revealing new opportunities
• Enjoying new experiences
• Downsizing, purging, and lightening your load
• Discovering a new side of yourself
• Finally calling more of your own shots

Keep it going now, there are more.

Maybe we’re starting to get used to the idea that the world has changed for the long haul. That we won’t be returning to normal as we once knew it. 

Hey, a lot of people have quit their jobs over it. 

We still have no idea what the final new normal will look like.

Wait a sec, did you even give the idea of a final new normal a second thought? Because there won’t ever be a final new normal. It would start to change as soon as it arrives, if there were such a thing, that is. You can count on that!

And that’s okay… because you know how to handle it now. So embrace it.

The good news is, in knowing that the one thing that human beings ALWAYS, ALWAYS, ALWAYS do eventually, is adapt.”

— @gapingvoid

Be untucked.

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