A recent article by Peter Leyden (1) made the case that this political and economic turmoil we are experiencing is part of a very predictable 80-year cycle. It seems that every 80 years or so, the US goes through a time of shaking and re-setting, where a new order of things emerges. Starting in 1776 with the founding of the country; 80 years later the Great Civil War; eighty years later World War II; and 80 years later: our present reshuffling of the political order and the advent of AI.
According to this cyclical view, things will settle down in a new pattern and last for about 80 years when another major reshuffling will occur.
While the 80-year US cycle may be unique, the idea of cycles in the life of nations and individuals is a well-established phenomenon, with Biblical precedent. In the Old Testament book of Leviticus, (Chapter 25) God established a 50 year cycle. Every 50 years, the Hebrews were commanded to celebrate the Year of Jubilee. In the year of Jubilee, slaves were freed, debts were canceled, and the land that had been sold and mortgaged reverted to its original owners. In other words, after 49 years, there was a reshuffling of affairs, as the mistakes and excesses of the past generation were erased and the economy started fresh again.
This was on top of the seven-year sabbatical cycle previously established. So, the Hebrews were to live by a seven-year cycle, and then, seven time seven, or after the 49th year, establish a larger cycle.
In a recent phone call with one of my associates, he remarked that he had observed a five-yar cycle in his life. After five years or so, he found himself in a new situation. I replied that I had observed a seven year cycle in my professional life as well. For me, every seven years my situation changed, and I found myself doing something different than the previous time period. Here’s what it looked like, beginning in 1980:
o 1980 – Moved to Grand Rapids to take on a management role.
o 1987 – Went into private practice as a consultant, speaker and writer.
o 1994 – Published my first book, which supercharged my sales guru status. .
o 2001- The 911 disaster was the stimulus for creating a series of phone seminars, followed by live seminars around the country, which combined to lift my practice to another level.
o 2008 – The real estate crash put a gradual end to the public seminars
o 2013 – Solidified my involvement in CEO roundtables and specifically for a Christian-oriented audience.
o 2020 – The Covid crises signaled the end to my traveling and speaking practice and I found myself spending most of my time writing and podcasting.
My transitions were occasionally gradual, and sometimes sudden, and, on the other side, I often found myself still doing a bit of what I had done before. I was not cognizant of the cycles at the time I was transitioned, and only realized that pattern in retrospect.
My transitions were not intentional, in that I did not set out to do something different. Rather, I reacted to the circumstances that presented themselves to me. From my Christian- world-view, I attributed them to a God intimately involved in my life.
That our lives are shaped and influenced by cycles should come as no surprise to any of us. Think: Summer, Fall, Winter, Spring; day and night. In addition to these very obvious cycles, the idea of cycles in our lives is far more pervasive than many of us realize.
Regardless of to what source you attribute your cycles, chances are you can chart the cyclical pattern in your life. So, regardless of where you are in the pattern, relax, you’re just in a cycle. It too shall pass.
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