Life Cycles-The First Lesson

This is a different post. I'm not featuring any famous or well-publicised people as teaching devices. No, this is a time for reflection on my previous eleven posts. Oh and of course it is a time to tell an unknown story.....my own! You know the vast majority of Revolution Year events happen in seemingly less significant ways. But that's only because our lives aren't written about much. It doesn't mean that my life isn't interesting as is yours. All lives are interesting! All Revolutions touch the person concerned in a fundamental way.

OK, so what happened to me when I was 36? Was I a bit like Napoleon? You don't think so? Read on. Leading up to this birthday I had been a management consultant employed by an international firm with a well-known pedigree. I had started to take a real interest in the largely unknown field of outplacement. Unknown at the time in Australia that is. Back then there were only two providers one in each of our two biggest cities. I put forward a business plan for our firm to get into it, including pinching a dissatisfied member of the rival firm's team. But I had a major problem in organisation life. I was too much of a 'one-outer', not a good 'brown noser' and my director told me "no" and said:- "that's like retreading old tyres". Then to my horror I saw a newly arrived older consultant, lunching this same director and announcing:- "I'm going to set up outplacement complete with an overseas study tour and a budget".

Well I was furious and discussed it at home. My wife said:- "Why don't you just go into business yourself". And very soon after with little preparation I did. I felt pretty let down by the whole thing. It was my "Trafalgar" moment. There I was doing bits and pieces of work when a colleague from another firm, who had gone into business at the same time told me of a colleague of his, in executive search, who was a friend of the principal of the leading UK outplacement company. Talk about six degrees of separation! I was put in contact with this person, who it turned out wanted to establish an Australian franchise. Well I had to dig deep and put my house on the line, but guess what I did and the rest as they say is history.

It was to be the start of my major career as I built the business from nothing to be a major player in this emerging market. And yes bigger than my old employer's operation. Such a moment has not happened before or since in my life. I answered the call and I won my own personal "Battle of Austerlitz". When I was in the middle of it, it didn't feel comfortable and it was definitely fateful. I wasn't in control. Now don't tell me any other theory can adequately explain this. It simply can't.

So what is the first lesson? Think about it carefully. It's in twelve parts (one for each post). Not a wasted word. In fact the whole blog symbolises the theory. Don't worry I'll teach you how later.

OK. The Year of Revolution is something you get every twelve years. It starts with birth (the greatest revolution of all) and happens again at 12,24,36,48.60 etc. Often the important mid-life age of 36 features strongly and sometimes 24 and 48, but and listen closely:- " all Revolutions are equal". They all involve important change ushered in through upheaval. At this time fateful events occur and we are not fully in control. They are symbolically equivalent to re-birth. You do not have to die to come to the next incarnation. You get a version of it when you're alive.

I know this is new and different and that people generally like the stories but are not sure of the whole theory. Well I didn't come across this to hide it under a bushel. No I came to share it with you all. This is not "the wisdom of the ancients". You are receiving it right now in your lifetime, from one of your peers.

My next post commences the next cycle, which will be full of interesting stories and lives of celebrities in meltdown and of course your next icon. Stay tuned and until then:- "may the cycles always bring you good fortune".