Looking back, to move forward- 2021
History is the backbone of our civilization. Covid-19 is not our first pandemic, and it won’t be our last. Let us look back to move forward.
Have you ever heard of the Emperor Marcus Aurelius Antoninus? Marc Aurelius was a Roman Emperor and a Stoic Philosopher over 2000 years ago. He was the last of the Five Good Emperors. Around this time, a horrific plague had ravished the Roman Empire. This Plague was called the Antonine Plague or the Plague of Galen, named after the Greek physician Galen.
During such trying times, Marc Aurelius had the enormous task of managing the Plague. He decided to stay with his people in Rome. Marcus weathered the most destructive plague of Rome’s 900-year history, never showing fear, reassuring his people by his very presence. He didn’t get unnerved; he didn’t panic. He insisted on what was right, never what was politically expedient.
The year 2020 has tested our resilience a great deal. It has been a Digital Transformation Officer.
The Corona Virus has brought on massive changes in who we are. It has forced us to make complicated choices. They are the choices we made, and we do not regret them. We are the decision-makers. What we do today affects what we will do tomorrow. In that sense, doesn’t the past determine our future?
In this case, I don’t believe Newton’s Third Law of Motion applies to people. Not everything is predetermined; not everything has an exact reaction. Things are over when you decide it is. You decide the way you react to things. The decision you make today can change the way your world operates. The key to this is learning continuously. We learn through the mistakes of our past to create a better tomorrow.
Looking Back is the most powerful way to look forward. The past holds valuable information about who we are and where we came from. It can show us the times we went down and the peaks of our success. The past teaches you not what you should do, but what you shouldn’t do.
A few years from now, the events of 2020 would be nothing but a distant memory. But what we will witness is more unpredictability. We might have an unstable political environment; we may endure wars. But we will have much more; we will have innovations, new norms, and even start a revolution. Maybe even live on Mars! (looking at you, Elon). Small drops of water make the mighty ocean. Do not underestimate your worth or impact. It doesn’t matter if you are a start-up or a huge conglomerate; you have the power to decide.
The key is learning from the past, not repeating it. Have a growth-oriented mindset and use your past mistakes to navigate the future. Knowledge is power, and this power helps you gain a better understanding of the world; it gives you a different perspective and clears your mind.
In 2021, I hope we continue to see things for what they are, just like we did in 2020.
Happy New Year to you and your families. To a safe, productive, and exciting 2021.