King Arthur's mentor, the Wizard Merlin, lived his life backwards--striding from life's terminal point toward birth. Though this may be an admirable trait in a wizard, remaining fixated on yesterday's slights and old news offers mere mortals only an unhealthy mind and an enduring sour disposition.
Across several decades I spent much time trying to break this bad habit with clients, staff, and others. In my management consulting, sick organizations often contain high clusters of these unhealthy ones. A mentor once reminded me that "you cannot undo history." While history may teach one much, it need not control the present or future. In fact, living backwards, looking over one's shoulder inevitably produces an intellectual cancer ruining the life abundant each of us can live every new day. Both individuals and organizations prosper only to the extent they leave yesterday behind and with "eyes on the prize" stride confidently into tomorrow.
Some years ago the USA Today focused a sport article on the expression "it is what it is", a saying growing in popularity among long time sports enthusiast. The paper drew upon Don Powell, psychologist and author of Best Sports Cliches Ever!. He says the phrase means, "It's happened. 'I'm going to forget about it. I'm going to move on. ... There is nothing that can be done about it.' " In others, forget the past and move on.
For we who labor counseling others our central offerings draw inspiration from Powell's advice. What's good for our clients ought to be equally critical to how we and the organizations of which we are part handle our histories. If we do not our hypocrisy and preoccupation with who did what when leads to poor living, poor loving, and poor futures.
Muses, mutterings, and other wild ideas
Rev. Ernie Beal
