The World Has Ended, And So Begins A New World

 

 

You might not have noticed but the world has officially ended. According to Mayan calendars, and doomsday politics, it’s all over.

[SOURCE: © Tim Green, used under creative commons license]

Now maybe we can get on with building up the new world.

The doomsday rhetoric of 2012 shouldn’t be surprising. It fits in well with a Presidential election where a challenger is seeking to unseat an incumbent President. Romney had to make the case that what Obama was doing wasn’t working, and was in fact heading us to more woe. Add in the political brinksmanship approach of the last two Congresses, and you pretty much have the picture of political discourse in 2012 in the US.

Now add in a media whose bias is to sell content (not liberal, not conservative, just have to sell noise), and we’ve got the recipe for a cacophony of hopelessness. It’s enough to put oneself into a depressed, sour mood.

If you are reading this blog after December 31, 2012, then you’ve survived the end of the Mayan Calendar, the end of the American Way from President Obama being reelected, and you’ve fallen down the Fiscal Cliff. And guess what? We’re still here. That gloomy world has passed us, and now we have a new world in which we can grow again.

What did you do on the last day of the world?

Politics and pop culture aside, the business world hasn’t really bought into all the doomsday BS in 2012. Sure, the press could find some CEOs to quote about delaying investment or hiring because of the “uncertainty” of the Fiscal Cliff. Actually what they were saying is, “since the politicians can’t stop arguing, we don’t have a reaction.” What I’m seeing in my work, however, is that the business world is deep in a realization that it needs to innovate its way to growth, not hold fast.

I’m also seeing a whole host of startups focused on exploiting several technology trends that are changing the way we do business such as the growing prevalence of smart phones.

[SOURCE: © Lisa Schaffer, used under Creative Commons License]

What this means to us normal humans is that change is upon us. The old world has ended. Now we are in a new world. Imagine embracing this new world like a child, but with the benefit of experience and wisdom. These are my new years resolutions:

1. Learn something new
2. Find new opportunities by looking at old ones from a new angle
3. Take a risk as if I have nothing to lose
4. Fall down and learn from a failure
5. Build upon a success
6. Hug someone I love

Sure there’s a lot to do to make this new world better than the old one we left behind. Hopefully in embracing the new, we get past old stereotypes, thinking, and rhetoric that have been holding us back.

I’m optimistic for a creative, innovative and prosperous 2013 for all of us.