Weekly “What if?” 18.1: Twenty Eighteen

What if 2018 were the year everything changed?

What if, in 2018, for the first time in history, every person on Earth had enough water, food, shelter, safety, respect, and opportunity to live a healthy, happy, successful life?

What if our future schoolchildren read about 2018 as the year where things started really looking up?

What if, this year, humanity became carbon-neutral?

What if we look back at 2018 as the year we stopped viewing economic growth as the primary definition of success and prosperity?

What if 2018 became the year people looked back on and said, “That’s when everyone started really caring about each other.”

What if this is the year we really started listening to one another?

What if, in 2018, we decided to replace hate with love?

What if racism, sexism, classism, and all the other -isms that divide us all went away in 2018?

What if we began celebrating our differences and the opportunities for learning, growth, community, and collaboration that they afford?

What if, in 2018, we began reaching out more to people we didn’t understand? People we didn’t know? People we didn’t like?

What if we started valuing our teachers the way we value celebrities?

What if we asked more questions in 2018?

What if the worst thing to happen in 2018 already happened?

What if the best thing to happen in 2018 kept getting replaced by another, each and every day?

What if 2018 were the year we apologized for our mistakes?

What if it were the year we forgave others for their mistakes?

What if 2018 were the year we started seeking to become closer, not farther away?

What if 2018 were the year we sought to open ourselves up, rather than to close ourselves off?

What if, this year, we tore down more walls than we put up?

What if this all started with you?

What if 2018 were the year you gave yourself permission?

What if, this year, you start doing what you’ve been wanting to start doing, and you stop doing what you’ve been wanting to stop doing?

What if, in 2018, you do the thing that scares you the most?

What if you looked back at 2018 as the year you started that company you’ve been wanting to start? Quit that job you’ve been wanting to quit? Write that book you’ve been wanting to write? Go on that trip you’ve been wanting to go on?

What if 2018 were the year you forgave yourself?

What if you followed your heart more in 2018?

What if you followed your head more in 2018?

What if 2018 were the year you said “yes” more?

What if 2018 were the year you said “no” more?

What if you read more books in 2018 than you’ve ever read in a year? In your life?

What if someone made 2018 the best year of your life?

What if you made 2018 the best year of someone else’s life?

What if 2018 were the year everything changed?

And what if you were the person to make it happen?

I don’t think any of these visions of 2018 is impossible. In fact, they’re all much closer than we think. If you’d like to chat about how we might make any of these a reality this year, get in touch: hello@taylorcone.com.

(Every week, I write about an idea I developed, discussed, or discovered that week. Writing it down in this format is sort of like a personal “Yes, and!” session for me, where I can explore and develop the idea more. Some posts are quick and punchy, some are long and detailed. Let me know if you have anything else to add or want to explore the idea together!)