Yesterday, I was biking down the canal through Camden and I stopped, suddenly.
The ground was dry behind one of the locks and there, on the canal floor, were rusty bicycles, mangled supermarket trolleys, glass jars and bottles, plastic containers, hundreds of metal cans.
It shocked me because, only the day before, with the water high, this had been a scene of pure beauty.
It made me think. Is this indicative of how we are in the world? As long as everything looks okay on the surface, we don't ask too many questions about what lies beneath.
We turn up to work exhausted, or depressed, but are masters at getting through the day with a smile; we come to the Alps for fresh air but the pollution is worse in Chamonix than London; we buy bigger and juicier looking oranges but these have less and less vitamin C; we send our children to the best schools, but this is more about our insecurity than their education.
Does our care about appearances influence us more than we'd like to admit.
I've always wondered how differently we'd do things if we all wore our insides on the outside. Literally, if we hung our hearts, kidneys and lungs on the outside of our clothing, so that people could really see the state that we are in.
Would this change the way we look after ourselves?
Not sure. Our obsession with appearance is deeply rooted; these facades are cleverly kept in place by an unwritten agreement that if you don't out me, I won't out you. I will buy your story, if you buy mine.
That's why it is thrilling when people don't play the game. When people stand up to authority like Mandela or speak their mind like Russell Brand. Or write a insightful poem like Oriah Mountain Dreamer.
So where's this thought-piece taking us?
Heading into the New Year, many of us will spend some time thinking about 2014 and look at what intentions or commitments we want to make.
And my questions for you is one I sometimes ask my clients - what do you really care about; I mean really care about? And will this be happening in the New Year?
Will you dare to get close to what matters to you and leave the appearance thing behind, the "what other people think".
Or will the mangled shopping trolleys of your life remain in place because as long as no one else can see these things, everything is okay.
Something Practical
For some reason, knowing what it is that we care about is often elusive. We may sort of know but not exactly. Probably because we never sit very long with this question. Here are some questions to get the creative juices going.
1. What things are so important to you that if they did not exist life would not be worth living?
2. What does your life look like with no regrets?
3. What is the headline of your obituary?
And now the big question is how can you incorporate some of these things into your 2014?
Something New
Doing new things requires some boldness. And I want to offer you a resource for stepping into the scary and not shrinking back.
Jim Lawless has 10 steps on how to tame what he calls the roaring tigers that would otherwise have you cowering in the corner.
He is someone who I guarantee will inspire you to do new things in your New Year. http://www.jimlawless.com/watch-jim
Have a great holiday and take care.
