The fifth type of mistaken thinking we can easily fall into during this time of change is called attachment to outcome.
When times are stable, having a strong emotional attachment to a particular goal can help us to achieve that goal. But when everything is changing, no outcome is ever guaranteed. Now a strong emotional attachment to achieving a specific outcome can become a disadvantage if it makes it difficult for us to adapt changing circumstances.
This doesn’t mean that we need to give up all hope of ever achieving anything during a time of change. Instead, we can learn to thrive in times of change by doing two apparently opposite things: letting go of our emotional attachment to a particular goal, while at the same time retaining our absolute intention to achieve it.
This becomes easy when we know our purpose.
When we know our purpose then if circumstances change it becomes easy to let go of a particular goal and look for new objectives that will achieve the same purpose. Knowing the purpose behind our actions will also bring us extra energy and enthusiasm to achieve whatever goals we pursue.
This is the attitude that enabled Thomas Edison to invent the lightbulb. Each time he tried something that didn’t work he didn’t wail, “Oh, no! I’ve failed again! Boo hoo!”
Instead, he said:
“I have not failed, I’ve just found 10,000 ways that don’t work.”
And then he moved on to his next attempt.
In this time of churning and change, knowing our purpose will bring us extra meaning, energy, and enthusiasm in our work and in our personal life. And when circumstances change, knowing our purpose will make it easier to find other options that achieve the same purpose.
All this enables us to combine commitment with flexibility. And that is yet another step towards becoming antifragile: able to use change to become stronger and more inspired.
What is your top priority today? If it became impossible to achieve that goal, how quickly and easily would you be able to shrug it off and focus on another goal? How well do you know your life’s purpose?
Adapted from The Churning, Inner Leadership: a framework and a set of tools for building inspiration in a time of change.
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