Why Change and Adaptability are Essentials Life Skills for the New World

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Welcome to Jon Michail’s Personal Branding Masterclass. Jon is the founder and CEO of image group international an award-winning image consulting and personal branding pioneer established in 1989. This podcast will bring you old-school wisdom, inspiring ideas, strategies and hacks for the new tech world. Here you will learn everything about personal branding: the system, the techniques and the right mindset to have a successful personal brand, image and reputation.

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Hello, everyone, and welcome to another episode of my podcast. Today's topic is about change and adaptability, and why they're essential skills for today's world. You know, over 2000 years ago, the Greek philosopher Heraclitus remarked, that the only thing that is constant is change. And, of course, I follow that up with a reminder of the quote from also, Charles Darwin who said, it is not the strongest of the species that survives, nor the most intelligent that survives, it is the one that is most adaptable to change. And a reflection on that is to think that every time something has come up in your life, recently, or in the past, the adaptability to face that particular challenge is what made the difference. Because specifically, obviously, if you didn't face that challenge, and adapt, then potentially there could have been serious consequences of that, and potentially would have created a lot of damage. So the reflection of looking at change and adaptability is essential. And even more so in today's times. Think about it. Since the Industrial Revolution, we've been facing constant changes. And within technology, in recent times, this has become even more accelerated. rapid change impacts us individually and collectively. And I agree, not always for our best. However, it forces us to face our problems, challenges to which we need to respond potentially with a new spirit and new energy, new eyes and think about your life 10 years ago, what was happening, then that isn't happening. Now, obviously, a lot of changes, what is happening now that didn't happen, then again, a lot of changes, like most people, you'll probably find that your life has changed quite considerably. We each have our own unique challenges we need to adapt to, that's a fact of life, and you cannot avoid that. But we also know as human beings, we don't particularly love change. I mean, how many people do you know that wake up every morning, so it's so great to be alive, more change today. Now we're, we're fairly comfortable just being comfortable. The key here though is to, you know, be open to the possibility of adapting. Because without that possibility, you're locking yourself into what I would call a box, that potentially can become devastating down the track, especially in today's world, as I've mentioned previously, with the mental well-being issues going on. And of course, Mind and Body Spirit, in many cases, are totally out of sync with the individual. These changes might be personal, also, or professional can be big or small, and chosen, in other words, at times forced upon you again, or specifically decisions you've made yourself. And as I've said that when decisions are made yourself they are the most powerful decisions that were made, but they're also some of the most difficult because, as I've noted, we don't particularly love change, regardless of the type of change though it's an inescapable part of life and something that should not be avoided. And I explain this to you also, from the perspective of looking at the workplace right now. You know, the workplace around the world is changing, you got all sorts of challenges happening, including finding people, in some cases, people that go depending on the industry, and so on. So this is part of adaptability, you know, this is something that's really out of your control. So the best thing you can do there is, of course, focus on what you can control. And that's your own mind-body-spirit in reference to also making it more adaptable. You certainly have faced situations like this in the past, from the point of view of having to adapt to quote, survive, for example, in the last couple of odd years with the lockdown and COVID and so on working from home is also an adaption for a lot of people, it's been positive for a lot of people, so and so and so some people very negative. Look, it's up to the individual, you know, and the circumstances obviously, that they facing, but that stability again, as a reminder is a key here, you know, it's the key even, it doesn't matter, you know If you agree or would not agree with what's going on, the choice is going to be to adapt by doing. So let me tell you something that you won't like to hear. Simply doing, as you have always done and, you know, resting on your laurels, is a surefire road to disappointment. And worse, you know, that could lead to all sorts of other stuff. Because if you're looking at anxiety, depression, and so on, it's all about if you get into change, and the keywords in reference to taking away from today's Your imagination is also part of constantly changing your outlook on the world. And of course, imagination follows creating, if you're not creating, okay, another action, again, you can get very stale very quickly. And the final of that is action, action, action action. So I would recommend, sometimes, action, for the sake of action is better than doing nothing at all. And I'm saying and of course, there's also the opposite of that, sometimes you're better off doing nothing at all. But my point in today's podcast is, of course, to inspire you to get on with a concept called adaptability, and basically make it part of your being. I also know some of you will ask me, but John, what if it's not in our individual nature to be adaptable, I get that. But I'm gonna say to you, right, now, you got really limited choices, because it's the only way we grow well, you know, learn this new life skill, I would say, and it is a skill. And if that's the case, and in time, yes, you can become adaptable, that is clear evidence of that. And of course, as a coach, we see this weekly on our clients that at times, but come and visit us, we're a little bit stuck, did not want to move, you know, utilize different tools in reference to getting people to move forward. Okay, and I'll explain a little bit more about that in a second. I believe one of the reasons that change also specifically, is not effective, other than all the psychological and subconscious reasons. So I'm not going to go into that today, I'm going to keep it fairly simple, is because you need to also have a reason to change or be adaptable. So part of my work is to uncover, you know, and find out what's the really, really big reason you need to adapt to. So we can get into some sort of change, or even in many cases transformation. And we know from history and our own lived experience that we can embrace adaptability, and change if we want it badly enough. And yes, as I mentioned earlier, it's a learned skill, research and my own lived experience told me, it's not easy to get under your comfort zone. And this is where a good friend, mentor or coach can help you and can provoke you into action. Okay. And a lot of this is really some tough love at times, because the nicey-nicey. Very, what I would call his warm and fuzzy approach at times does not work. And the check actually inexperience, it shows me that it can actually make things worse. So sometimes you gotta hear what you don't want to hear, as we all know that and, and that's where a trusted and respectful friend, mentor coach can play a big role here, you know, you want to be really conscious about that, because although everything is up to us individually, we have the power to create, and carve our destiny to some extent, all the help along the way, the support mechanisms, you know, we can even call them conduits, you know, to your well being are essential here. And if you look at this, even from a medical point of view, if you're looking at a doctor, for instance, he doesn't heal you, you heal yourself, and doctors, only a conduit, no different to any other form of support that's available out there. So just think about that, you know, from a macro perspective, and then see how this on a micro-level, of course, impacts your own life and what you might have to do. And remember also, that you might experience yourself as someone who doesn't like change, right, as we've already discussed. And you know, we know this because most people don't like to adopt, they just want to keep on going with the old and what makes them feel comfortable. But it's important to remember that change, as we mentioned earlier is inevitable, either way, and the world is changing quickly, with your will or not. It's up to each of us to really get what that specifically means for our own lives. The same thing with your career and business. There are huge changes happening with or without your blessing. Do I have to say right now what's happening with Wall Street and what's happening with the Ukraine war, and what's happening with the, you know, the hot climate conversation? There are a lot of changes happening up there. And I can go on and on economic Shakedown, you know, it's, it's all happening, right? And you got to view this. And you got to view the change and adaptability from a macro perspective, okay? And then apply on a micro level, how does this impact my life, because the macro elements of change that are happening worldwide, will have an impact on your micro will have an impact on you personally, you might not see that yet, but guaranteed it builds just over time. And there are also, of course, some changes that you can't control, right, like some of the ones I've noted, but my focus today is what you can control. And that's where your self-power comes from. And like yourself, leadership, that's something you know, that's always with you, it's inside you, it's not outside of you. It's an esoteric concept, you know, as opposed to exoteric. So if you feel uncertain or insecure right now, remember this, a diamond is a chunk of coal, that made good under pressure. That's it, when you look at that metaphorically, as a simple concept like that, again, if you agree with that, then potentially, you know, you're a rough diamond that needs a little bit of cutting, and a little bit of polishing, and, of course, a little bit of tender loving care to take you to the next level. And this is where, of course, I would strongly recommend looking at this as adaption is actually good for you. So it's better to embrace the course of change, you know, and make it your own, okay, because when you do that, then you have more control about some of the actions you're going to be taking moving forward. And of course, as I've spoken in past episodes, changes in that are available for all businesses, from SMEs to multinationals. And more on this topic, you could always listen to my last episode on innovate or die, what leaders can learn from brand Netflix and you will understand, you know perfectly what I mean. Okay, I think we've come to sort of the completion for today's podcast. I hope you've enjoyed it. And if you liked this episode, I kindly ask you to write the show on Apple podcast. And once you do, please send us an email confirmation, and we will send you our ebook the real-world guide to authentic personal branding. You can find me on social media. My Twitter is Jon_Michail, my LinkedIn is Jon Michail and on Facebook, you can find me as Image Group International. As always, I thank you for being part of the audience today, and I look forward to chatting with you next time. Have a great week. Cheers.

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''Jon Michail’s Personal Branding Masterclass" Podcast is sponsored by Image Group International, a global team of practical, digitally savvy personal brand and image strategists, based in Australia, committed to maximizing your impact, influence and authority in the business world. To learn more and apply for your personal coaching, seminars and group workshops please visit imagegroup.com.au or call 1800 631 311.