As we continue to float in uncertainty and reeling from 18 months of pandemic survival mode, it seems that we will require more than fancy drinks, posh clothing, and first-class tickets to establish a sense of achievement and a sense of purpose.
Millions of people had to reinvent, rethink, reassess their paths, lives, people surrounding them, life journeys, choices, and mistakes. Some of them by choice, some of them forced by circumstance. Happiness and joy are now more elusive than ever for those who tied them to possessions and public achievements anyway.
I was never aligned to this idea; don't get me wrong, I enjoy the small (and bigger) luxuries of life, but I define neither myself nor my people in those terms. I am a firm believer in thriving under adversity, not due to a sense of commitment only, but also because of a sense of survival that surpasses the momentary struggle. You thrive when you are aware, you are wise enough to see the details but not fret them, aware of intentions, but not bound by them. Eager to live and let others live, keen to improve, nurture, sustain, succeed, and fail in equal measures.
The pandemic was an obstacle for some; it was challenging and unexpected as much of life can be before, during, and after COVID. As a group of companies, we enjoyed helping people and companies navigate the obstacles, find solutions, explore options, prepare, mitigate, manage and foresee.
So was it all an eat-pray-love saga? Not at all! It was a painstaking process, full of stress, full of nerves, full of adrenaline... a battle of shorts... that reminded us of one simple (yet bittersweet) truth, clarity comes from pain, and hindsight comes from mistakes. These, my friends, are the elements that safeguard our joy and happiness! You can not ever experience one without the other! So hang in there; the best (or worst) has yet to come.