The Past

There seem to be two distinct views on the past, one tells us not to forget the past and the other says put the past behind and start afresh. I don't know what the right way is, but I know what I've seen work and what I've seen fail.

I am a big proponent of continuing to move forward, yet I'm not always so keen on forgetting about the past. Not to say holding grudges or being stifled by the past is healthy, but to ignore the past seems rather foolish. In my case the old saying 'those who forget the past are doomed to repeat it' rings true. Moreover I have seen that 'forgetting' the past leads folks to selectively forget the past, as such forgetting the successes of the past and remembering the negatives.

Needless to say I am suspicious when someone says this is a new day and all that stuff that happened is over and gone. Personally I have seen this lead to short term morale boosts but long term failure. I've seen it in my own life and in many organizations I have studied. It seems the best thing, from what I've studied and experienced, is to intentionally focus on the past to see what was done well and what was not to look for ways to build the future.

So, maybe the saying for viewing the past should be a little bit different- maybe when we look at the past we should take the stance of not throwing the baby out with the bathwater. Just something to ponder on a Tuesday morning.