Goodbye to a Golden Retriever?

Driving 25 km/hr a late night going home from the shops, increasing by 1 km at a time, 26, 27, 28. Not because it was foggy. Not because I was tired. Laughing like a madwoman all along: people truly would think I’d gone mad if they saw me. What’s going on? Well, as some of you would know: I’ve gone Hybrid.

Probably also hybrid living, hybrid being, hybrid doing – but here I’m talking about hybrid driving. I recently went hybrid. And what a fun journey of exploring. How we drive. How to drive. How to get home from the shops on a late evening without using any petrol – and without being a nuisance to the surrounding traffic (because there was none!).

Let’s take a step back!

Years ago, when I held my very first Business Rebels event, Toyota had just brought out their new Toyota Corolla Hybrid, and I made it the theme for several presentations around that time.

The videos fascinated me: how clever engineers had created an engine that could use petrol when needed to push through, speed up, get places – and could charge a battery while braking or going downhill, so that you could run solely on your own battery when you were going slowly, accelerating sensibly, or just cruising.

How clever!

Little did I know that we soon would experience hybrid living across the world, in a pandemic that put the whole world on pause. That we were all to go into battery mode. And little did I know that I 3 years later would get my own Toyota Corolla Hybrid to enjoy.

This could be a full novel, but let me focus on the core theme: being flexible. Knowing when to give full throttle – and when to take your time. So many people had light bulb moments through those presentations, it’s like masculine and feminine energy (which as you’ve heard me say before has nothing to do with gender: we are all able to use both). Some people realised they were always going full speed. Others admitted they had to get the pedal to the metal for some parts of their business or lives.

It’s not easy to change habits. Trying new ways. It’s a bit like me saying goodbye to my old car. The Mazda that had served us for 13.5 years and been our family car for all our time in Australia. Like saying goodbye to a Golden Retriever.

Which is your Golden Retriever? The battery mode or the full-throttle? Maybe it’s time to say goodbye. Or at least to say welcome to new habits. 25, 26, 27, 28.