What will compound the test that many of us will face is a very genuine uncertainty about where civilization stands at this moment. Some will see a kind of glamour or at least hopeful mystery in the beckoning of an historical cycle change, but uncertainty about the course of human events will manifest for most as real world anxiety, vulnerability, and fear of abandonment. The issue of self-discipline, the rigorous honoring of one’s own inner code and the stewardship of one’s real asset base, is going to be a premier universal concern in this time frame.

The preceding with its implication of sacrifice and effort is, of course, likely to prove untenable for a large portion of the population. It is clear that the masses, including consumers and colleagues, enter into this year with a genuine and energetic sense of collectivized hope as best reflected in the political regime change in Washington. Howsoever, the auguries most powerfully suggest that this hope is flimsy at best, and that the flip side may be a Pandora’s box of insecurities leading to nervous instability and the potential for grass roots fanaticism and aggression in the face of inevitable economic and social strains and disappointments.

To those who are sensitive to the currents of time, the feeling that will pervade the zeitgeist might be fairly characterized as a basic training situation. It may be a grand simplification, but the essence of training is the impartation of constructive discipline by the trainer, just as the key to its success is a willing attitude on the part of the trainee. Right now it’s bound to feel like we’re all in God’s boot camp…and strong bosses with the appropriate messiah complexes should correspondingly have the authoritarian time of their lives.