A recurring lament among those of us who have businesses online is that nothing is working and everything is broken. While it might be hyperbole to use the words nothing and everything, they aren’t far off the mark.

So much is in flux in the online world that it can feel impossible to find a groove. Big Tech platforms such as Facebook and Twitter are a shadow of what they were. YouTube might better be called CensorTube at this point as they quickly deplatform men and women with views that question the Official Narrative. Pinterest is a mess. TikTok is owned and manipulated by the Chinese. Newer platforms like Rumble, Odysee, Gab, and Truth Social are still finding their way and gathering their audience.

One of the exceptions to this malaise is Substack which is growing by leaps and bounds. As quality writers and experts in their various professional fields go there to eagerly share their knowledge (and earn a much needed income), there is a sense of something new and significant happening. Substack is truly one of the bright spots for those who make a living online.

The reality is that each of us will need to continue to make paradigm shifts wherever we work or live. The world has been rapidly changing as we barrel through this Fourth Turning and approach the First Turning. The world we grew up in, received an education in, and even began our families in no longer exists. It’s not coming back. We live in a new world we don’t fully understand. We are truly living in a type of not-yet.

Part of making it through the last phases of the Fourth Turning with our sanity intact is the ability to be flexible and adjust on the fly. We may have to adjust more frequently than we want to. We don’t have a choice. We’re marching toward something we can’t see and so it’s difficult to plan.

Rather than giving into frustration when a plan doesn’t work out, accept in advance that we’re living through a time when flexibility will be essential. As institutions around us continue to fail, we will be impacted. Very few of us are going to escape unscathed in one way or another. The key is to try to reduce our exposure to the potential failures and be ready to adjust when we miss the mark.

We each need to build resilience into our lives and the lives of those we love. Husbands and wives need to work together to lead their children through this paradigm shift as there will be many opportunities for personal growth within families. In the end, the people who are able to adjust, pivot, rethink, and push through the difficult times will be well-prepared for the First Turning that awaits us.

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