In a world that is unrecognisable in many ways, is it futile to visualise our future and go forth with optimism? No, says Anita Chaudhuri, but we need a different approach for different times

Anita Chaudhuri

Usually, new year is my favourite time - and not just because I am Scottish. I love the ritual of gathering coloured pencils, stickers and all my shiny new stationery in order to create a plan of action for the coming months. The problem is that life is about as far removed from usual as I’ve ever known. Is it even worth bothering to dream big when the future is so unclear and unpredictable?

“ The brain needs a plan and it needs instructions. We need to set goals and feel as if we’re in the driving seat of our life"

Life coach Shannah Kennedy, author of The Life Plan: Simple Strategies For A Meaningful Life (Penguin, £27,99), suggests starting from a more inspired place. ‘Right now, we need to adopt the mindset of adventure. We can’t see what the path ahead is going to be - but if we decide to look at it as a voyage of discovery, then at least we can plan for that. The brain needs a plan and it needs instructions. Whatever is going on externally, we still need to set goals and feel as if we’re in the driving seat of our life.’

She is not, however, advocating that we go into a la-la-land state of denial about reality and how life has changed. ‘We do need to grieve the things we can no longer do. It’s healthy to express sadness over the plans that didn’t turn out as we had expected,’ she says. Kennedy recently had to cancel her 50th birthday party, a holiday in Croatia and a workshop in Spain.

‘After that though, we need to pivot. We can still be working on our big, beautiful plans, but we need to accept that they might not eventuate exactly on time. Plans may go awry but learn to view that as a detour, not a failure. And we can take smaller actions towards our overall goals every day by simplifying and slowing the pace,’ she says.