Word of the Day - Pronoia
This ain’t no April Fool’s joke - I’m declaring pronoia as the word of the day !
Most people have heard of paranoia - the belief that everyone is conspiring against you. But what about pronoia? Pronoia is the belief that everyone is conspiring in your favour (or “favor” if you prefer).
Today more than ever, now is time to embrace a sense of pronoia as you make sense of the world and resist the temptation to adopt a survival mindset rooted in paranoia.
Contrast a few examples of how a shift in mindset makes a huge difference in how you feel and how you will ultimately behave.
Paranoia
Everyone else is stocking up on toilet paper and food to protect themselves
My customers aren’t paying me because they have no consideration for my situation
I’m getting laid off because my employer is greedy
People are greedy and don’t care about me and my family
Pronoia
Stores are doing everything possible to minimize shortages of food, toilet paper and others are making purchase decisions based on their perceived needs
My customers are doing everything they can to honour their commitments to all their suppliers, employees and to whomever they owe money
My employer is trying to help all employees by ensuring the longterm viability of the company
People are genuinely concerned for everyone and have a legitimate concern for their own families (heck, I’m no different !)
I’m interested in your take on this and any additional examples that you can share to help us better deal with the coming weeks and months.
In the meantime, please join me by making pronoia your word for the day - and maybe longer.
