If You Fight Change, You Are Sure To Lose
You’ve undoubtedly heard the expression that “the one constant in this world is change”. In his theory of the survival of the fittest, Charles Darwin stated that it’s not the strongest or most intelligent of the species that survives, it is the one that is most adaptable to change. For example, we don’t see dinosaurs wandering the earth anymore, but we have “human dinosaurs” who acquire that nickname by clinging to old ways of doing things when there are now newer and better ways.
The history of human progress has been marked by great changes in the ways that we produce goods and the ways that we provide Education and health services and the ways that we transport ourselves. We have also only begun to explore outer space – where we are likely to discover things that we can’t even dream about now.
Yet, for many people, the knee-jerk response to a novel idea is to resist change because it’s more comfortable to do things the way that we always have. But progress doesn’t take place in your comfort zone.
By embracing change, we have benefitted as a society by expanding educational and career opportunities to a more diverse group of individuals – including women and people of color; we have increased the average lifespan; and we have exponentially multiplied our knowledge base through the use of computers. Our knowledge and productivity have the potential to increase even more dramatically through the use of Artificial Intelligence (AI). Yet the reaction of some people is to fear the changes that AI will bring.
AI is an example of why embracing change is important. While it could potentially do lots of bad things like dumbing us down by doing all the thinking for us or allow robots to control us more than the other way around, the opposite could also be true. We can welcome change and its ability to increase our knowledge base while saving us time – if we embrace it and use it effectively. When we don’t embrace change, we lose.
A couple of examples where we, as a global society, have resisted change have been the areas of climate change and world peace. We have the ability to change behaviors to have an impact on climate and to use means of negotiating win-win situations to make the world a more peaceful place, but too many people and governments are unwilling to trade convenience for greater control over our environment and to trade totalitarian power for negotiations and trust and compromise.
When I sat down to write this, I didn’t mean to make my message so heavy – but I do want us to recognize that what applies to nations and societies also applies to individuals. When you fight change, you are sure to lose, but when you embrace it, you can control it. The payoff is in such things as improved health, improved knowledge, and a future marked by a greater quality of life. Look for opportunities in your personal life to maximize your potential and quality of life by selectively accepting change and using it for your benefit.
