Waking Up in 2012
The parties over it’s time to get back to work, but what sort of year are we waking up to? Much has been made of 2011 as a year of protest; Time magazine even featured a generic protestor as it’s person of 2011. Many people are unhappy, unsettled, something is not right in their world and they want to change it. You know the feeling; something in your life has to change but you just can’t put your finger on exactly what it is. Personal change is something that we are all faced with at some point in our lives but it’s not always something that we want to face up to. We often ignore it or push it away. Sometimes if we do that it just comes back with a vengeance at a later date. But however unpleasant it might seem at the time, having awareness of our problems is a good thing not a bad thing. You need to have awareness of problems to change them. But just saying that something is wrong won’t always change it; moaning about it probably won’t change it either. Protest is not a policy. You need to welcome your problems because it is often a sign that you are growing and that you are ready to take the next step. Also solving problems in our lives gives us satisfaction, becoming aware of your problems is a blessing not a curse.
For knowing what your life will look like on the other side of change can be easy enough. Sometimes it is that very picture of where we want to get to tells us that something now needs to change. What we often struggle with is the how; what do I need to do to have the life that I want, that I deserve. You might read books or watch DVDs or clips on You Tube. But the change that you need to make is driven by action. Your thoughts, your dreams, your desires are created through action. So resolve yourself into action, unrelenting, unstoppable, step after step after step of action. Become the action hero of your life, because by doing that you improve the lives of those around you.
The problems we have seen in 2011 will doubtless continue to play out, financial instability, war, inequality, a dishonest relationship to honesty, will carry on into 2012, because opening a new Dilbert desk diary doesn’t fix them. These problems which we all face to a greater or lesser degree are a sign that our society needs to change and that, in the same way as it is for you as an individual, they are a sign of our collective growth. They are a sign that we are waking up to the fact that the way we run our lives and our societies needs to change. We are waking up to the reality of reality and it is by doing so that we will change our reality. What can you do to contribute to this; have more awareness of how things work in the world and think for yourself more than you have ever before. Wake yourself from your slumber, rub your eyes and blink and see the world as it is and imagine it the way you want it. Then turn to your partner, your friend and your neighbour and whisper in their ear “wake up” “wake up” “wake up”.
Everything starts with awareness.
Written by Ewan Mochrie