Personal Development: “Cocooning in a new decade” November 22, 2020
Posted by Dennis Mellersh in Concept of personal development, Concept of personal growth, Uncategorized.Tags: Cocooning, Covid-19, Faith Popcorn, life, lifestyle, mandated sheltering, personal development ideas, personal growth, Personal Growth Books, philosophy, psychology, writing
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Cocooning is a concept coined by social philosopher and futurist Faith Popcorn in the late 1970s, which described the idea of spending more and more time at home as a refuge from the noise/disruptions of the outside world.
In her book The Popcorn Report (1), published in 1991, she said “cocooning…when we named it, [was] “the impulse to go inside when it just gets too tough and scary outside. To pull a shell of safety around yourself, so you’re not at the mercy of a mean, unpredictable world…”
“Cocooning turned into a major preoccupation, as record numbers of people remodeled, redecorated, restored, and then watched, “This Old House” to relax.”
But, all of this was nevertheless a choice; we made the decision to go inside, to cocoon.
It was part of an enjoyable lifestyle.
But now in 2020-21, and perhaps beyond, pushed inside by a relentless Covid-19 virus and mandated sheltering, we are in the midst of an emotional and physical health crisis.
Instead of comfort reading, we are more likely to be reading personal development and personal growth books on coping with anxiety, or working on reading or writing job-related reports on the kitchen table because we have been forced to work remotely from our homes.
But hopefully, in part by utilizing the coping tools we have learned, and by community efforts and working together, we will emerge from this stronger and have more of an attitude of gratitude and appreciation for what is good in our lives.
(1) Faith Popcorn, The Popcorn Report, Doubleday Currency, New York, 1991
Dennis Mellersh
Personal Development Ideas 