This is a basic diagram of a story.
All stories are essentially a journey from an old normal to a new normal. What you have in between is a murky middle, where the people in the story have left the old normal behind but haven’t yet reached the new normal.
The only way for them to get to the new normal is to keep moving towards it, one action after another, and those actions create the story. It is often deeply uncomfortable, because in the middle of a story, the people inside have no guarantee of what the new normal will be. They only have a dream of what they want it to be, which guides their actions.
As a planet right now, we are in one heck of a murky middle. We have left a lot of old normals behind. The U.S. election is just one aspect, both highly impactful and extremely divisive, but as far as dreams for a new normals go, most people agree:
There has to be a healthier, kinder, saner world than this.
Related reminder: both presidential candidates in the U.S. election are in their seventies. The life expectancy of a man on this continent is between 75 and 78 years old.
Because we are all mortal, we all have a limited amount of time on this planet.
Most of the people who follow me here are significantly younger than 70. That means you will likely still be here when both of these men are gone.
In this way, you have much more power than both of them. You have more of your own story left—and more impact on the future.
Choose what you will do with it.
To prepare for the next four years, think over the past four years. Consider how much time and emotion have been spent over problems that felt like they were out of our control. For example, I have seen people I love dearly spend a great deal of time upset over what was said on such-and-such social media platform. I have told them, as I now tell you, you give power to what holds your attention. Why is your attention still there? Why aren’t you turning your attention to the new normal you want to see?
Decide what kind of world you want to help to build, and then move in that direction a little bit every day.
Voting is just one important action you can take. (Though some of you are still too young to vote, I trust those who can vote have done so.)
But there are more ways to take a step towards the new normal you’re dreaming up.
If you’re stuck, try asking:
What skills do you need to build what you want? What knowledge?
If you see a problem, can you investigate the source rather than rely on hearsay?
What techniques can you use to cope in the healthiest way possible? Can you just keep calm enough to be kind, even to strangers? (With so many people not coping well, this is actually a major contribution.)
It is exceedingly likely that we won’t know the election results for a while. Many people will spend this time glued to their screens, so emotionally invested in who has won that they can’t do anything else.
Rather than waste these weeks wrestling with uncertainty, my personal goal is to put my time, attention, and energy towards the new normal I’m dreaming about. I’ve got a list of tasks that are the same no matter what the election results are, and that’s where my focus will be.
So, when you are invited to get sucked into turmoil over the uncertainty, remember: One man does not create the world. We all do.
So, what do you choose to build?