Getting On With Business

The title covers a lot of territory. Political? Economics? Governance? COVID? Personal life? What?

The ‘what?’ is most likely. The fact we have so many focal points to deal with, each of them vital to us all, says a lot about the year in which we have been engaged. 2020 will go down as momentous for many reasons, surely the Pandemic is primary, but so too the shambles of national governance experienced throughout the year. National, yes, but state, regional and local, too. The infection of propaganda and power grabs by elected officials was a shame on our nation not soon to be erased.

There is more to the ‘what,’ however; how about personal responsibility to take care of self, family and friends as best we can. Why rely on organizations or government agencies to help us unless it’s the last resort. Why can’t we take responsibility for our own actions and reduce the spread of a disease through commonsense actions? Why can't we train our own kids at home in the basics of good citizenship and manners without always assuming the schools or churches will do this for us? Parenting is not a remote control enterprise. It is up close and personal. Besides, we learn good things about our kids in such interpersonal relations. And they learn about us as adults, too. Role modeling is effective educational process.

Innovating products and services are not just for the entrepreneur. It is also for professionals engaged in their employment throughout their life. Improving the quality of life in commerce is up to all of us, not just the stock owner or CEO of the company. We are the persons at the ground level of business. We are the ones doing the business, buying the services, being the customer, and serving customers. It is we who have the power to know and act for the good of all.

Keeping our neighborhoods neat and tidy is not up to the Streets and Sanitation Department; it is up to each of us to keep litter minimal, to pick it up when spotted, and to maintain our own yard and building as best we can.

The rules of the road are helpful but keeping traffic well-modulated and moving is up to our own sense of right and wrong as well as manners. The Golden Rule helps here: Do unto others as you would have them do unto you. It makes sense on paper, in the mind, and behind the wheel of the car. Practice it well.

COVID will eventually go away. In the meanwhile, strengthen resolve to do great things. Plan for them in your life. Have time on your hands now? Write that book or essay you have been aching to create. Research the small business you have always wanted to open. Read the long list of books you have been putting off for so long. Plan what you want life to be for you, not what the next step on the treadmill of consumption is. Take the time to know yourself. Be that person now and prepare for the day COVID is not a constant concern.

Our society will return to a normal routine. We don’t know what that will be or how it will be. Just prepare to adapt and thrive in whatever environment comes to be. Accept change as a dynamic of possibility. And then make it work for you and your dream.

December 14, 2020