Many people think they are not resistant to change. No one would like to be labeled as “change-resistant”. It seems like we are becoming more educated to know that resisting change is not good if the change is positive. Meanwhile, I observed that the challenge is not really about people deliberately standing in the way of change. It is more about people not embracing change. It is not about resistance but about lack of support for, and a passive approach to change. The reality is that change is a fundamental law of life. I have always maintained the position that each one of us should step forward to create the change that we would like to see in the world. There is no point in waiting for change to happen such that we can go with the flow or ride on the wind. Rather, we can be deliberate in what change we want and then work toward making it happen.

I learned something profound in studying the technology adoption curve, which is a model that can be used to represent the uptake of a new technology. This curve or model has five zones that represent different categories of people. There are the innovators, the early adopters, the early majority, the late majority, and the laggards. Innovators are the change makers, those who create the future that everyone will live. Early adopters are trail blazers, those who lead the way by their willingness to try something new. The early majority and late majority are more risk-averse, those who wait to be sure things will work. The laggards are skeptics, who come too late to the game. I challenge you to be an innovator, or at least be part of the early adopters. Waiting for change to happen may mean that we become victims of the change.
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Change is happening all around us. The question is not whether we will be impacted by the change or not but rather what we will do proactively to prepare for and lead the change. Our collective future requires an active pursuit of change rather than a passive approach to change. How would you ensure that you stay on top of change?

​Until another time,
Dele Ola, Award-Winning Author of Be A Change Agent
​Click HERE to learn about and get copies of Dele’s Books

When I was thinking about this week’s newsletter, I thought of something like “pursuit of meaning”. Then I remembered that what is meaningful to someone may not be that meaningful to another person. What we are all looking for is fulfillment, a state of inner happiness and satisfaction because of our labour, work or activities. Have you ever sat back to ask yourself, “why am I doing what I am doing?” If you have figured out the reason for doing what you do every day, then I would say “congratulations”. We all know that life is more than being born, going to school, then going to more school, getting a job, starting a family, working for 35 years, retiring and then counting the rest of our days. There must be more to life than the average monotonous life most people live.

Meanwhile, happiness is not as far-fetched as most people think. The reason the majority are not satisfied in life is because their labour, work and achievements are directed at themselves. It doesn’t matter how rich or successful you are, it will be challenging to find fulfilment until you start living for something outside of yourself. Most people find meaning and fulfillment by doing things bigger and greater than their own self. There is the sense of happiness we feel from within when we contribute to worthwhile causes that benefit others, fulfilling needs and solving problems in society.
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When we think about doing something worthwhile for others or for our community, it is easy to think about Mother Teresa and Nelson Mandela. However, you do not need to do anything outrageous to measure up. In fact, finding happiness from what we do has nothing to do with measuring up. What is required in a heart that genuinely cares about others and is willing to sacrifice time, effort and resources to make life easier for others and for all. It is all about service to humanity. Perhaps this newsletter is part of my own service to humanity, among many other things. How about you? What are you contributing through your work, relationships and activities in pursuit of happiness?

We do many things without thinking about them. In fact, most of the decisions we make on any given day are made subconsciously. We usually don’t have to get too serious about most of our activities of the day. For example, what does it matter whether you toasted your bread or not? You may toast the bread if you have a toaster, but if you don’t, perhaps the bread would be okay untoasted. On my way to work, I usually have options of three or four possible routes. Guess what I do? I check the GPS, and I follow the route that would take me the least amount of time. I don’t really care much about whether I take Ottawa’s route 14 or 19. It is the same when we relate to people. It is the same way most people even talk. We have the tendency to be casual in our dealings with people and things.

While it is impractical to calculate every activity, every move and every simple decision every time, we must surely be intentional in the matters that carry weight. Certain aspects of our lives cannot be handled with levity. For example, although toasting my bread may not have any significant impact on my health, deciding to get enough sleep after a long day may. In that case, I will need to be intentional about rest after work. Similarly, serving my wife water using a light blue cup rather than a dark blue one may not matter much, but the way I talk to her is something I must be intentional about. Each one of us has aspects of our lives that require deliberate actions every day.

In which areas of your daily life do you need to be intentional? Think about your choices of words and actions. Think about your relationships, place of work, your affiliations, your disposition to challenges, and your career growth. Could you be more intentional? One danger of lack of intentionality is loss of opportunities. When things are done thoughtfully, there are better chances of making an impact. I have decided to be deliberate in handling every significant affair of my life. What about you?