How many times have you been in a spirited conversation and have heard the response, “yes, yes, but…”?  When we hear this response, it may indicate that whoever uttered this comment, either you or the other person, is experiencing some degree of ambivalence.  Ambivalence is defined as a state of mixed feelings or contradictory ideas about something or someone.

As we approach the New Year, it may feel something like sitting in your car at a starting line with one foot on the brake and one on the accelerator. What lies ahead in many ways is uncertain.  2020 brought about monumental world changes that none of us anticipated.  In 2021 we will probably continue to experience additional monumental changes.  However, we do not know what they are.

While we may be excited to move on to the New Year, we may also be apprehensive, at the same time, for what we do not know.  Along with this ambivalence we may be hearing different and conflicting information from those around us and the media.  With all this uncertainty whirling around us, it can be difficult to know what to do next.

Returning to our analogy of our car at the starting line, rather than having our eyes focused on the end of the hood, the focus needs to be down the road.  Realizing that whatever happens, we can navigate our future when we create a forward momentum based on listening, seeing, reading, engaging with trusted sources, and involving oneself in discourse with others.