Adaptability - When Needs Must

This past week has been one of the busiest of my life, filled with painting, sanding and other housework in preparation for a move.

Due to a time constraint and a lingering doubt about being able to finish the work before the move-in date, I’ve had to make it a priority and put almost everything else on the back burner. So much so that I’m currently writing this on my phone on the train during my commute.

This week's Coffee Thought needed to be written, and so to save time, I thought about writing it during my commute, which ironically led to the idea of writing about adaptability.

Not so long ago, a situation such as this would have stressed me out, causing worry and anxiety and possibly even burnout.

But, due to the ability to adapt, I’ve not only avoided the stress, but I’ve even left room to really enjoy the chaos.

Life will eventually throw you a random curveball, sometimes multiple all at the same time, these can be extremely hard to manage on top of everything else you might have going on.

The goal isn’t to avoid them, as, just by being alive, problems are coming. Instead, the goal is to become unshakable in the face of chaos.

Yes, having perfect conditions all the time would be fantastic, but very unrealistic. The truth is, you’re only going to achieve your goals with the ability to adjust to unforeseen circumstances.

Do I want to be writing this on a train right now? No, but I’m able to when circumstances call for it, and that’s what matters.

Being able to adapt is especially important for the difficult goals that take a long time to achieve, as the longer it takes to complete, the more times you’re going to be faced with situations such as this, and without the ability to adapt, you could potentially lose all progress.

Adapting doesn’t necessarily mean juggling everything and having equal impact; it’s about accepting circumstances, identifying the priority, choosing the essential, and being okay with temporarily adjusting your focus and output on others.