What Happened To The New Normal?
Its not what it used to be, that's for sure.
Okay, it's Monday 8th January, the proper start to the new year. Last week was just a practice run, a chance to finish up the last of the Quality Street chocolates, clear out the remaining mince pies and down the final drop of Christmas whisky before dry January. But I don't think this is simply the start of a new year, I think this is the start of the so-called and much-hyped "new normal", which is characterised by a total lack of vibes.
Last week I eased into the new year with some coffee catch ups with friends and customers and you know what I found out? One split up with her husband over Christmas, one has resolved to split up with her husband this year and another is starting to experience the first murmurings of marriage dissatisfaction now that the honeymoon is over. Worker bees across the board have been told to return to the office five days a week and most are too spooked by the economic outlook to argue. The new normal is not what it used to be but why?
During the darkest days of the pandemic one thing kept people afloat; the idea that this was an opportunity to reset the way we live and work, to "build back better" as a plethora of politicians promised. We could commute less, work from home, spend more time with our families and remain productive. We could shop less, use less and live more aligned with the nature that was drawn back into our neighbourhoods by grass and wildflowers that were left alone to flourish. We would be more mindful and less busy, cultivate hobbies and finally achieve the holy grail of work/life balance. But it didn't happen did it? We've drifted right back into the old normal but, somehow, worse.
What did you do for new year's? I accept that I am too old to party like I used to but when I looked at celebrations around the world they all seemed subdued and a bit...meh. Did you see the footage of the fireworks in Paris?
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Or compare the ball dropping in New York from 2002 to 2024.
I don't meant to imply that mobile phones have ruined the world or anything, I don't think tech is the issue here. I just sense a pervasive disappointment, that we had the chance to create a better world and then we just...didn't.
The animals have retreated back to their hiding places in the forests just as we have retreated back to hiding behind our cubicles in strip-lit offices. Who's still baking their own bread? Anyone? I didn't think so.
The sense of deja vu is enhanced by news coverage of Trump back on the campaign trail carping on about World War III and the end of democracy. It's like we skipped over the last eight years and landed back in 2016 but worse because this time we should know better.
I also don't mean to imply the pandemic was in any way a good thing and I have no desire at all to go back that time with so much anxiety and grief. But I am sad that we appear to have let a once-in-a-generation opportunity to reinvent to way we live and work pass us by in favour of a return to the bad old days and I don't think I'm the only one.