Steve Jacoby and the recession

My friend Steve Jacoby and I were talking about the economic recession and the impact on one of his projects. The recession was inexplicable, he didn't know what to do, he felt hopeless.

That mindset felt familiar to him, and when he traced it to its roots, it went back to when he was 4 years old. He really wanted to go with his friend, Roger; his mom, for no explicable reason, wouldn't let him. The matrix of beliefs he put in place were: he could never have what he wanted, because he was too little; only adults get what they want, and he'd never be an adult: so he could never have what he wanted. None of which was true, of course. But the beliefs had been like an underground chorus in his life, whenever, for inexplicable reasons, he couldn't get what he wanted. Not every time he couldn't get what he wanted, but the refrain was there – off and on over the last 50+ years.

Once the faulty wiring was laid bare, Steve could see that he just got snagged by his 4-year-old misinterpretation. He got that he really has what it takes to handle not only this project, but whatever else comes his way. And so he does.

In some ways, hasn't the recession been the stimulus for resurrecting our old, out-dated beliefs – demands that life be predictable; so that we can lay them to rest and see the possibilities inherent in every change?