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Be adaptable in a changing world
Thursday, 7 June 2007
When I look and listen to the people around me, I get the impression that many of them are terribly afraid of change. You can see it in the way they cling desperately to a job they hate, keep friends who are obviously bad for them, and stay in abusive relationships. You can see it in the way people continue to try the same old strategies that used to work even when things are clearly different.
But most of all, you can see it when people have change forced upon them. Think of the stunned looks on workers' faces when they're forced from their jobs by an industry downturn, the lost hopelessness of the newly-divorced, or the confusion of someone recently moved to a new city.
Even positive change can cause great anxiety. Many people, for example, are extremely reluctant to try out fun new activities.
What is it about change that frightens us all so much?
I think it's partly to do with the fact that even without change, the world is an extremely complex and confusing place. Just figuring by how to get along in a static reality would be hard enough, let alone one that keeps adjusting itself all the time.
Yet change is something we all have to deal with. It's a big part of life. No matter how hard we cling to the illusion of permanence, reality keeps intruding with its own ideas.
And it likes change. A lot.
So we're all forced to be adaptable. It's a skill that's worth learning. In fact, the best way to deal with change is to embrace it. Try to anticipate what's going to happen and look forward to the day when it arrives.
Running from change is a big problem for many people. We all know old people who refuse to adapt to the new world. They seem quaint and vulnerable when having to deal with things that young people take for granted.
But, even young people can be afraid of new things. When I was a child, my family moved around a lot. That meant I went to quite a few different schools. At the turning point, I always hated this. I felt settled where I was and didn't want to go into a strange new environment.
Yet in almost every case, I had a wonderful time when I settled into a new school. I made a whole bunch of new friends, discovered new activities and improved my social skills. All that moving around taught me to be very adaptable. This is a skill that's served me well throughout my entire life.
And it's a skill you should also try to pick up. Even to the point of forcing change on yourself sometimes. At the very least, rise up to meet the challenges it presents when it inevitably happens.
Change is a non-negotiable part of living in reality. Like surfing a giant wave, it's much easier to swim with it than try to fight it.
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