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Change

The cliché is that nothing is more frightening than public speaking.  But I contend that change scares us even more.  Don’t get me wrong, public speaking is palms-sweating, heart-thumping scary, but we can plan, practice and prepare for it.  Change is all about The Great Unknown – and what’s scarier than that?

Of course, the cliché that most reasonably follows is: "the only constant is change."  Here’s the thing – it’s not just that change is inevitable, it’s also that it’s accelerating, and thanks to big-brained, opposable-thumb-wielding, upright-walking humans, probably always has been. 

I’m not physically agile:  gravity and I have never been friends and I’ve learned not to tempt it.  I’m also not particularly intellectually agile:  give me a minute (or 10) to figure out what’s going on around me.  If I can’t get there on my own, I can always spend some quality time with my best friend, Google, and hitch a ride.  What does have to be agile, though, is my attitude:  at the very least, I need to embrace the concept of change, whether I like it or not. 

This need is growing exponentially.  Each generation stands on the shoulders of the innovators of those that came before.  The taller that tower of innovation gets, the more powerful it becomes.  So we have to be adaptable.  When business isn’t working “the way we’ve always done it,” how do we make it work?  The simple answer is:  differently.

Personal change, political change, climate change, professional change, economic change – how do we cope?  With a significant birthday on my immediate horizon (and facing our own mortality is one of the scariest changes of all), I have actually spent the past year consciously seeking out change.  I got a new job in a completely different industry, joined a gym, started eating better, lost weight, made a trip that was three years in the planning, even tried Jello shots and falafel.  I also have plans to get a tattoo and confront my fear of heights (any tips on zip lining?).  I even got my gallbladder removed, and while that’s certainly not a change I planned or sought, it was a change to be dealt with just the same.  One of the changes I did plan on was to not be so opposed to change.  So bring on The Cloud and Artificial Intelligence and Katy Perry’s latest hair color and undeniable middle age.  I’ll try not to panic.


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