Early this morning, daylight savings took effect in North America. In Mexico, we´re a few weeks behind so I´m having to make some adjustments in my appointment calendar. I remember when I lived in Ecuador and Sixto, the President at the time, instituted a daylight savings plan for the country. This had never happened before and people were outraged that a man would dare interfere with God´s clock!
It was the funniest thing to have a discussion about “what time it really was”. People making appointments would clarify whether or not they were cooperating with “Sixto time”. Half the country complied, while others refused to change their clocks. I still remember the anarchy it caused in our appointment schedules. People were not willing to change what they believed was God-appointed timing and were feriously stubborn about this point. If the clock said 2:00 p.m., they felt that it just wasn´t right to say that it was now 3:00 p.m.! For us North Americans living in the country, we were accustomed to changing our clocks twice a year, and were bewildered at how a simple procedure practically caused a civil war.
One of the greatest challenges in life is our degree of flexibility. I am sure you have felt your stubbornness kick in on more than one occasion. Sometimes looking back, we can see that it was just stupid pride or foolish stubbornness. I can see in perfect hindsight where my lack of flexibility has caused problems in business and in relationships.
If you want to create a magical life that really flows, you will need to be flexible. Period. This is not open for discussion. I have never met someone who was inflexible who was also happy.
So a very simple question to ask yourself is: Five years from now will this decision be important? Usually, it won´t be. So give in. Be flexible. What difference does it make if right now it´s 1:00, 2:00 or 3:00? Adjust! Get over it! Lighten up!
You can be stubborn or you can be happy. They don´t go together, so decide what you want most in your life. Personally, I´d choose happy every time.
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Immmmm this question of “how flexible are you?” made me stop and think. It might depend on who in my circle of family and friends you asked
I admit to being quite inflexible when I was younger. I felt I needed order and routine in my life to be organised and plan my weeks ahead. It gave me peace of mind that everything was in its place. I don’t like the unexpected, I find it stressful, and I prefer to think things over and “regroup”.
But in life, not all things go my way! I have learnt over the years that not everything needs to be so organised and run just right, well my version of right anyway. I have adapted a lot with teaching over the past five years. With the various personalities and learning styles of students, I have learnt to cope and work with many different behaviours and the quality of work produced. I have had to deal with many things that completely throw my nicely laid plans up in the air. And I lived through it all!
It is true what they say “what doesn’t kill you makes you strong”! Whilst my personlity will always prefer order and organisation, I have found that life is more exciting and challenging when curve balls are thrown at us and we face it head on.
So how flexibile am I? Well, all I can say is that I am a lot more flexibile than I used to be!
Suzie
Suzanne Early
http://www.early-detection-for-breast-cancer.com
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