Spring Forward in the New Work World

This past Sunday, as I entered Mass at my parish, a simple message displayed on the sign in front of the building unexpectedly moved me. It read: “Lent is a time for spring cleaning for the Christian.” Lent, in the Christian tradition, is not merely a season marked on a calendar, but a sacred forty-day journey of prayer, fasting, sacrifice, and self-examination. It is a deliberate invitation to step away from distraction, to confront the habits and attachments that no longer serve us, and to prepare our hearts for renewal. Much like clearing a home of dust and clutter, Lent calls us to examine our inner lives, sweep away what has grown stagnant, and create space for spiritual rebirth.

The dawn of each spring, no matter what religion or spiritual beliefs you practice, offers inspiration to invite renewal and rebirth into our lives. Yet we cannot obtain such change without first experiencing our own “spring cleaning” of sorts if you will—removing the old growth that no longer serves us. As Pablo Picasso once said, “Every act of creation is first of all an act of destruction.” Cynthia Occelli reinforced this idea with her own words: “For a seed to achieve its greatest expression, it must come completely undone. The shell cracks, its insides come out, and everything changes. To someone who doesn’t understand growth, it would look like complete destruction.”

With spring upon us, let’s take advantage of the hope and renewal of spirit it represents in the face of much global uncertainty. Let’s turn inward and clean out the stagnating decay that might linger in our personal and professional lives so we can properly bloom into our best selves in the New Work World.

Let’s take a look at a few examples that might illustrate using this new season to our best advantage:

1. The Legend of the Sunflower

Legend has it that sunflowers follow the sun, but when it is cloudy and gray, they face each other and share their energy. While this might not be scientifically true, imagine how this might apply to you and the people around you. If your company has experienced a slowdown of sales or layoffs because of the many changes upon us, what can you do to clear out negativity and face your coworkers with a positive attitude? Consider focusing on the uplifting activities of your company and job rather than the losses or setbacks that have transpired over the last few years.

2. The Enthusiasm of the Forget-Me-Not

Many tales have been spun around the forget-me-not, tying it to true love and memory. It is frequently characterized by beautiful, delicate blue flowers. Beyond their reputation and looks, however, forget-me-nots are extremely enthusiastic self-sowing plants. Not needing the intervention of outside forces, they tend to spread like a carpet wherever they are planted. Consider how you might incorporate such enthusiasm into your own life. What might be holding you back from being a “self-sower” of innovation and positive mindset? What might you need to clear out to allow your beautiful light to shine in such a way that no person or situation could keep you from growth and expansive development?

3. The Balance of the Vernal Equinox

The vernal equinox is a time of balance, when day and night are equal length. It’s a time to honor both the darkness and the light as they exist in perfect harmony. Look at the dimming of light in your personal or professional life as a reason to dig deep into your inner self to seek balance and fulfillment in future endeavors. Do not just fret over the darkness you may have experienced in losing a job, in working a temp position, or in changing directions. Instead, view the situation as winter—the removal of old growth that no longer supports you—and look forward to your spring of renewal, rebirth and new beginnings. Seek the balance you might have been missing, whether in the fulfillment provided by your job or in the balance between your personal and professional lives.

4. Be Determined to Make Space

The late Victor E. Frankl, a renowned Austrian psychiatrist, neurologist and Holocaust survivor has long been remembered for his famous book : “Man’s Search for Meaning,” with the important theme being: “We cannot control what happens to us but we can control how we respond to what happens to us.” His poignant message that has lived on far beyond the Holocaust is: “Between Stimulus and Response there is a Space.”  Whether the stimulus in your life has been negative or even positive, think about that space before you move forward and make a response.  If for example you have had a significant loss of someone close to you or perhaps in reverse, a great event has occurred in your life, be determined to make space to ponder what you could possibly do  to assist others from the lessons you have learned from the experience.

This spring, let us remember that Lent offers more than just symbolic reflection; it offers a blueprint for renewal. Just as nature sheds the old to make room for the new, Lent challenges us to release what no longer nurtures our growth. By turning to one another for support like the sunflowers in legend, enthusiastically self-sowing like the forget-me-not, seeking the balance of the vernal equinox, and choosing to pause within the space between stimulus and response, we participate in our own sacred spring cleaning. In doing so, we honor the true spirit of Lent, not as a season of deprivation, but as preparation for transformation, renewal, and new beginnings in the New Work World and beyond.

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