Dare to Change

When I resigned from my first job, the Director of my IT department warned me against the danger lurking outside. I still remembered his words after 7 years. He said "It is a jungle out there". I thought this to myself. I rather be in the jungle than be inside a cage. I was very excited to face any challenges out there.

However, I moved from one cage to another. And then came the best part of all. I moved to a setting bigger than a cage.

And that would be a farm. Yes, a farm. So, I had the chance to be with a bunch of farm animals (figuratively speaking, of course! Please excuse my snobbery, my dear ex-colleagues). There are headless chicken, lame ducks, black sheeps, guinea pigs, sly old foxes and so on in the farm. But I saw mostly dogs. Not only dogs are dogs but they worked like dogs and look dog-tired at most of the times too.

Wait, that must include me too! I was the dog. Woof! Woof! Oh, I just remembered, I was also been called a Lame Duck once.

The farm is comfortable and realistically as simulating as the outside world, except it is not. There are greeneries, flowers, waters and everything we need as a farm animals. There are gates which protect us from the outside jungles. Everyone works strenously (wait, not everyone!) and innocously (in the surface). Again, the it-is-a-jungle-out-there sentiment is preached most vigorously. While food are fed to us, we are reminded that in the outside jungle, we need to do hunting on our own and most probably we would be starved and would not survive.

Indeed, it is true, but only for the one apparent reason. We are not trained to hunt at all!

And wait, it is not true for the part where people cannot survive outside. In fact, they survive better because they become stronger.

I have ventured out and I survived. So are the many people I know. Of course, there are bruises and scrapes here and there. But these are all invaluable life experiences.

So, why do most of us afraid of change? Previously, I was immoderately guilty of this. Otherwise, I would not be 7-years-late to venture out into the jungle.

In retrospect, I was being too safe, too afraid to fail and to lose what I have built. I understand this now - You don't win big by playing not to lose.

My ex-boss actually made a bet that I would not survive in the new company (the jungle) for more than 3 months. That was a classic attempt from him to dissuade me from venturing out, despite rigorously instilling the doubts and fears in me.

Although I left the new company after 4 months, I never regret the decision to venture out. In fact, it was the best decision I ever made in my life. The only regret - I was immeasurably late. I wondered at the chances that had passed by, the other different knowledge and experience that I could gain. But there is no use to ruminate all these.

I have to admit life at the jungle is hard. Sometimes, it is deadly dangerous especially for people who do not know how to hunt.

I fell down. I cried. I was crushed.

But I was also awakened. I learnt new things and I found invaluable things like love, genuine trust and respect from people and a new way of looking at life and work.

Mostly importantly, I have the greatest experience in my lifetime. From what I learnt from one of my favourite book, experiencing is the secret to success in life.

It is not the child who is taught about love but the child who has experienced love that grows into a healthy, happy and well-adjusted adult. Our present state of self-confidence and poise is the result of what we have “experienced” rather than what we have learned intellectually.

I have dared to change. For that, I stand tall for myself.