'Normal' Is Not A Religion.

By Les Mottosky

We're hearing a lot about normalizing things and stuff. As if it's the standard to strive for.

Normal is the responsibility of systems. To establish a repeatable, predictable result that is the reliable outcome.

Normal is for production lines, not people.

Being normal won't get a person what they want. (Even if what they want is to be normal.)

To understand why, let's take a step back: Is normal even possible in humans? At best, it's a synonym for average. But spend quality time with anyone, and you won't walk away thinking that they're average or normal. You can't. They'll inevitably be revealed to you as limitlessly unique, overflowing with nuance and quirks and weirdness and brilliance.

'Normal' is a superficial description of a human and the interpersonal version of judging a book by its cover.

Normal is only found as the product of a system. It may be a desirable, manageable, and controllable illusion within our societal system. The more those who identify with what the system defines as normal, the easier it is for the system to predict the behaviour of those people.

The hidden illusion within the system we live in is that it – the system – can't be changed. This is antithetical to nature and inconsistent with our ever-expanding (aka: changing) universe. Because everything is changing. All. Of. The. Time. The thing that makes the system we live in feel all-defining and all-directing is it's ability to maintain this illusion of permanent normal.

What was normal 10 years ago is different now. And normal now was different a decade ago. Simple social proof for this is masks. In 2015, if you saw someone wearing a medical mask, it was likely an ER drama on TV. Today, they're everywhere. It's "normal" now. Or consider EV's; ten years ago they were novel. Now they're ubiquitous. "Normal" changed again.

This is more than just proof that things can change; they are changing. It's just slow and unadvertised, but bet yer butt, it's happening.

If you want to affect the system, keep an eye on new, disruptive ideas. Find your pattern interrupt, then master it. That's your leverage to become the breeze within the winds of change. Someone's going to, it might as well be you.

If 10% of us became so conscientious? Or 25%? What's possible then?

Let's normalize that.

TAGS: #Pattern Interrupt #Wisdom In Leadership #Nature At Work #Humility #Observing #Nature Lessons #Adaptation As Innovation

Les Mottosky

Adaptation Strategist // I help organizations turn creativity into their competitive advantage by aligning leadership, culture, and strategy to unlock adaptive innovations.

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lesmottosky@mac.com

https://www.linkedin.com/in/les-mottosky-9b94527/