‘’It is not the strongest of the species that survives, nor the most intelligent. It is the one that is more adaptable to change’’
Charles Darwin
Accept that there are certain things you cannot control. I believe we all understand this on some level,
but we sometimes struggle to resist this basic truth. Even the things that are directly inside your sphere
of influence are beyond your control. You can influence several things, but many things are just out of
your control. We must understand that there are factors outside our control that will have an impact on
every element of our lives if we don’t want to live in everlasting discontent.
Learn to compromise to increase your chances of achieving win-win outcomes, even if it means that
things won’t always go as you had hoped. This is commonly referred to as “picking your battles” in
marriage.
Be conscious: If you’re not conscious of anything, you can’t change it inside your thoughts. You must
learn to study and observe your own thinking. Recognize when you start to get upset so you can take
appropriate action. Determine the steps you may take to change your mindset to one that is better and
more optimistic.
Consider change a natural aspect of life: When something finally fits our preferences, we typically don’t
want it to change. Dream, do, try, and never give up. However, if the wind catches your sail and twists it
or if the course of life conspires to lead you down a different road, let go and don’t fight it. Have faith
that the universe eventually knows what is intended for you and what is not. Don’t let fear of the future
keep you from living life to the fullest.
Keep a journal: Anyone who follows my blog knows I am a big believer in the benefits of journaling, and
this specific activity is one of the greatest ways to do it. Try to remember if something in particular set
you off once per day. Why did you become irate? What were you attempting? If not, why not? Did it
work? What might you try again? This form of retrospective reflection and analysis will help you draw
lessons from the experience.
Recognize that you cannot control others: Ah, one of the toughest obstacles. Because they don’t behave
in the way we want them to, other people upset us. It may be our children, our spouse or significant
other, our coworker or employer, or even our mother or best friend. But we must understand that
people are behaving in accordance with their personalities, priorities, and sense of what is right. We
must acknowledge that other people won’t always act and behave in the way we would like.
You can’t change the fact that stressful and sometimes life-changing events will occur, but you can
change how you interpret and respond to these events by learning how to be more adaptable in your
daily life.