I said before that change is hard and this remains true.
What keeps me (or indeed, any one of us) ‘here’ is more than inertia. It is a thousand tiny ties that bind. It is the longterm commitments made, the outcomes worked for, the plans not yet come to fruition. They add up to a strong force that maintains the status quo. And people like status quo, because change is painful.
But maybe my loyalty is not matched. What if, in fact, the return I expected has been eroded by time and drab familiarity? Perhaps, having taken me for granted, they no longer feel the need to consult me. Perhaps my reliability is so utterly dependable, that it has become invisible. I start to question whether the pull of mutual commitment has morphed into indifference and I am the only one holding on tight.
In any long term enterprise, whether personal or professional, a pause to consolidate is often a good thing. It allows you to confirm the route, course correct, ensure the stragglers catch up with the vanguard. You can only see what’s happening behind you if you turn to look, and trusting people very often don’t check behind them. Everything’s fine, right? At least it was, last time I looked… but now it’s time to remove the blinders and look at the whole picture again.
Respect is such a small word, and yet it is like a lynchpin, for want of which the whole wheel comes apart. It balances effort and reward that objectively are out of proportion. Without respect, things don’t add up, because it is a vital part of the equation.
Change doesn’t always require the strong pull of novelty. Decouple the past, cast off its ties, and another direction is but a nudge away. Who knows where it might lead?
