Last Thursday as I was walking down 66th street, I saw an old and dear friend walking down the block toward me. We were both on cell phones. We saw each other, hesitated as if we might stop, then gave each other a wave and look that said, “Can’t talk…let’s catch up later.” When I told my husband about it, he said, “Wow, that never would have happened in the olden days.” Then we both realized: The “olden days” is 1998!
It seems unquestionable that we are living in a time of unprecedented change. For so many of us, especially those with children, juggling uncertainty has always been a challenge. Yet the uncertainty we live with today goes much deeper than it has in the past. Many of the foundations that Baby Boomers relied on — lifetime employment, marriage, economic growth, a phone call instead of a text — have completely shifted. All this, and a tsunami of information that is almost impossible to sift through. So, how do we create the change we want in our lives, rather than just react to the change and information happening all around us?
Maybe the place to start is within. In my very first newsletter I introduced the Wheel of Life, and it seems appropriate to share it again today. Taking a look at each section, what would the experience of that element of your life look like as a perfect 10? Where are you seeing a significant gap between that description and what it looks like today? What would be possible if that section were a perfect 10? And, who would you be? How about planning 2012 with that person in mind?
