The Campaign for the New Possible Part 2

In Part One, I ranted on about defying the current call to the new normal, why we want normality and how, in my opinion, in this unique stage in the development of the world, we have a chance to look for something else.

In Part two I will encourage us all to look forward into the New Possible by exploring how that ‘ something else’ doesn’t have to be BRAND new, it just could be POSSIBLE.

I believe that The New Possible is a mind set, a world view, a visor through which you can begin to see and be encouraged by the possibilities.

It will enable you to see the new normal creeping up on you, and at the very least, have a second thought about it. 

At the very most, it will allow you to bless it and move on, even though it will have set some 'trip up traps' and diversion notices  - the new normal is nothing if not cunning and utterly comforting.

For example, I imagine you have a number of unachieved goals, schemes, targets, hope and dreams, just waiting on a list for the right time to arise, because I did, and still do!

Waiting for:

• The time when you have MORE time  - I sorry, but we won’t!
• The time when you have enough money - I’m sorry, but we never will!
• The time when that ‘other thing’ gets done and then.....

I call this the When /Then Paradox. 

WHEN ‘this thing’ gets done, THEN, like a Domino Fall, it will set off a number of scenarios that will end up with you achieving the goal, planning the scheme, hitting the target or making the dream come true. 

The problem with the WHEN /THEN Paradox is that we will most certainly get distracted by a ‘domino’ 

• that falls the wrong way, 
• or completely off the table 

And that will be that. We MIGHT well achieve something but it won’t be The Thing.

What a Prophet of Doom I am turning out to be!

So, would you have a think just now about that possible goal, scheme, target or dream.

 It’s certainly not normal or we would have achieved it by now, but it is possible, even if it’s a little out of reach.

This.... this is the time you have been waiting for. The time you can take the first step, which might be a simple as physically stepping up and try dangling your toe into the Pool of Possibility. This 2020 time where everything is still different enough for us to TRY.

You know that area of the beach, the waters edge, where the sand or pebbles meet the sea, where dry becomes wet, where solid becomes liquid, where warm becomes shriekingly cold, where safe becomes a little bit dangerous, depending on the weather or how small you are? 

It’s a threshold, a crossing into a new environment. 

While we might not have done it so much lately, we have crossed a million thresholds in our lifetimes; through physical doorways, stage curtains, changing rooms, on and off public transport, and emotional thresholds too; love, grief, fear, joy, conflict, peace and more.

How disappointing to go through the effort of crossing a threshold only to discover simply a NEW NORMAL, which by the way IS normal, so you must defy it and hold to the New Possible. 

It might make you unpopular with friends, family and colleagues, but it won’t last long, because they love you and value you.

For every rule there is an ‘unrule’ though. I recognise that for some, wanting a pre Pandemic life back is a very real lament and heart cry to be able to continue, complete, confront, compound significant projects that are on hold right now. 

 

The time will come!

So to summarise part 2:

• The time to try is most definitely now.
• The funding is what you already have
• Ditch the When/ Then Dominoes
• Step up and Paddle in the Pool of Possibilities
• Enjoy threshold crossing
• Possibly annoy friends, family and collegues for a little while
• Put on your New Possible visor and start to see where New Normal is setting traps
• Avoid New Normals traps

In Part Three I’ll be chatting about ‘Returning’ which is not the same as ‘going back’ at all.

The Campaign For The New Possible - 2020: the year that changed everything part 1

Do you remember NORMAL?

Those days when you were in control.

When you knew within reason, and with so much certainty that you didn't need to think about it, what would happen most of the time, apart from when you didn't, but that was actually ok as well, most of the time - sudden deaths, accidents and things like finding out that your friend is pregnant and discovering someone you thought was younger than you is the same age as you not, withstanding!

Those days when NORMAL equalled a range of 'unpredictable' that was comfortably predictable. You could pivot and change direction without much disturbance of the 'force', without stepping outside the normal comfort zone within which you went about your business, your pleasure, your up and your down time, your past and your future time, your now, and certainly your never time. Simply,you knew what you would and would not be prepared to do and all without really thinking about it.

You just knew what your parameters were, which meant you could function on a 'higher than normal' level, because NORMAL was 'done' and just ticking away in eyesight, but not really taking up much of your mind.

AND when abnormal things happened, as they did now and then, you knew you had a NORMAL place to anchor to and usually it involved a cup of tea/ any drink you like, maybe some tissues and something on the tele that helped you feel NORMAL.

And then one day - for me the 17th March 2020 -  just like that, NORMAL vanished. Overnight all the normal stuff leaked away and we know what happened - the outcome of a Global Pandemic finally hit the UK and amongst terrifying data and daily briefings, toilet paper, pasta and hand sanitiser became more desirable and valuable than platinum.

I am not going to commentate on Covid 19 from here on in as we all have our own story.

My focus is on our desire for NORMAL, cunningly hidden in what people are calling the New Normal, which IS NOT A THING!

What do we want? NORMAL!! When do we want it? NOW!!

But more importantly WHY do we want it?

We want it because it's not exhausting and it doesn't take up all out thought space.

We want it because we feel in control with it. 

NORMAL feels like we have won, like we have bent all the forces in the world to our own will and we can rest assured that 'I'm safe, I'm in control, I know things and can I also bake a cake, or write a blog, or drive a car, push a shopping trolley or care for a sick relative OR pet all at the same time.'

NORMAL is essentially your parents raising up the stabilisers on your learner bike, so you think they are stabilising you, but in fact they are not.

When you take them off though, crashes happen...….until you get use to balancing on your own and then you never forget how to ride a bike and that goes in your NORMAL file.

Which brings me to POSSIBLE.

Everything IS possible until it isn't which is a whole other sensitive issue - but for the purposes of this blog, we will surmise that for the majority of people EVERYTHING IS POSSIBLE. And for those people who might need some additional support for ACCESSIBLE/POSSIBLE, they can make it look really easy.

So to end part 1.

NORMAL is normal

New NORMAL is not a thing - its a lie that we tell ourselves to us to make us think that we will be in control again - which we will let me tell you -  but it won't be a NEW NORMAL, it will simply be normal.

POSSIBLE is something we can consider, as in 'Hmmmm, yeah, it's possible'

THE NEW POSSIBLE is what we are being given right now, today, in this UNPRESEDENTED time.

Time to think about what's actually possible that will be normal when we get our balance again.

We won't go BACK to NORMAL, we can go FORWARD to POSSIBLE.

End of Part One