The English language is a perpetual puzzle. Why do we “buckle up” for safety, but “buckle down” to get to work?
Some cars incorporate a tensioning feature into their seatbelt systems that, when sensing a braking input from the driver, pre-tensions the seatbelts against the driver to lessen potential movement of the body against the belts. A G-sensor in the vehicle’s management system stands by, ready to intervene for your safety. How evolved, how automatic, and how easy that form of buckling up is!
Most of life doesn’t feel so automatic. In the past five years we have been navigating unfamiliar territory. It started with COVID, then moved to price inflation, and now has been capped with upheaval at the Federal Government level—everything from big cuts to big tariffs. We have been rocked out of our comfort zones more times than we may have thought possible. Though the Federal Government is supposed to be a stabilizing influence, sometimes it can be a disruptor.
In the 1950s we had McCarthyism, the Red Scare, and the start of the Cold War; in the 1960s, Vietnam, the possibility of nuclear Armageddon, and more Cold War; in the 70s, extreme recession, 20% interest rates, and then the Iran Hostage Crisis; in the 80s, runaway growth and debt that led to the 1990s recession; and in the early 2000s the Great Recession rang the crisis bell. When you hear someone complaining about how bad or crazy it is right now, just take a look back—there have been plenty of equally wild rides in history.
Whether it’s this point in history or one of many others of extreme challenge, there really is only one way out: together. If you think about some of the extreme periods this country has faced—from the Pilgrims enduring overwhelming adversity in their new land, to the Civil War that took more American lives than all other wars combined, to the Spanish Flu epidemic that took 600,000 American lives and 30 million more worldwide in 1918, and then the Great Depression and the Great Recession—these all were dark periods filled with fear and uncertainty. There was no obvious end or cure until we finally “buckled down.”
Buckling down is the process of simplifying objectives, organizing them, and pursuing them to achieve momentum. During earlier crises, we often had little information and slow, poor communication. Today we face the opposite: too much information and too many ways to be overwhelmed by it. It’s often mind-numbing confusion, and many times people act just to quiet the outside noise in their own heads.
The solution starts from within. It starts with a resolve to stay steady, stay focused, help others, and not get pushed off target by the hubbub around us. The trick is to remain rational, stay focused, and not give in to the Devil’s temptation of panic and knee-jerk reactions. This too shall pass, and as in every other human challenge, we will be defined by how we stick to our missions and how we don’t give in. Start simple and build from there. Stay focused and avoid the overcorrection that motorcycle riders refer to as “tank slappers.” You get the picture!
Most importantly, I “buckle down.” Yes, that is me pre-tensioning my belts, getting ready for the next steps that happen beyond today, tomorrow, and next week. I buckle down for my family, our co-workers, our customers, and our community. I buckle down for our future. As with everything in life, this too shall pass. Buckling down will get us there quicker.