Why Being Adaptable Is Vital
When faced with any adversity in our lives, from the simplest to the most complex, our ability to be adaptable is what is among the most important. It’s how we show up and respond to it that will determine the outcome.
Take a minute to visualize two different scenarios:
You are floating down a babbling brook and though it may be bumpy, and even treacherous at times, the water helps you to continue moving as you eventually make it into smoother waters.
You are moving down this same babbling brook and instead of making it into smoother waters, you hit a dam that you can’t get around.
You can control which of these two paths you’ll take when faced with adversity in your life. You can choose the bumpy ride while not giving up and doing everything in your power to get to smoother waters or you can give up and allow yourself to hit that dam.
When I had my surgeries and was recovering from them I immediately decided that they wouldn’t define who I was. I wouldn’t be that person who rested on my laurels. I wanted to come back stronger than I was before, not just physically, but also mentally and emotionally.
In every situation that I’ve faced throughout my lifetime I’ve become adaptable. I couldn’t change what happened, but I could change how I was going to move forward.
Consider another example of where being adaptable is vital.
Anyone who is an experienced hiker to the most experienced mountain climbers will be adaptable to what the mountain, weather, or their body presents to them, even if it’s not what their original path or goal was. They will either adjust their path by examining their map(s) or if it’s weather related or something such as their physical stamina or an injury, they will turn back. Those that are adaptable won’t just let their allow ego move them forward. They will turn around and try again another day. Again, that’s determining which path they’re going to take, one of which could have very dire consequences.
Look around you and you’ll see examples of this every day. They don’t need to be as spectacular as mountain climbing. However, what is key is your resolve to be adaptable to any situation from the simplest to the most complex.
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