Adaptability
In our daily lives we have heard the word adapt many times. ‘We didn’t adapt fast enough’ is a common enough explanation for the poor performance and disastrous leadership of many organizations. But what is the meaning of it?
At its early stages it can be seen in the Darwins theory of Evolution. It plays a major role in the evolution of all organisms. Survival is the want of every cell. They grow according to the circumstances they face. With the passage of time, to face their environment, animals evolved according to their surroundings. Example: It’s easy to think that camels are “made for the sand,” but in reality, they’ve successfully adapted to their harsh desert environment over millions of years. Camels have long eyelashes to keep sand out of their eyes and wide feet to distribute their weight evenly on the sand. They have thick fur in sun-facing parts of their body, and thin fur in other places to allow heat to easily escape their body to cool off. And don’t forget their signature hump, which is full of fat that they can metabolize when there is no food or water around.
Adaptability is the most important human characteristic. It helps us to survive different situations of life. Adaptability is a very powerful weapon. In a different sense we can take it as an ability to observe our environment and then upgrade our thinking or ways of life as required. Some people think of it in a negative sense as they think someone is forcing them to do things. But indirectly even if they do not go accordingly they have to adapt in some situation or the other. They may change their track or change the rules but eventually in some way or the other they have to blend in. Although there are things that we can not ignore to adapt accordingly. Example: It is impossible to control the waves of social and technological change. It is better to learn how to surf those waves. There are people who are always complaining about the devices due to some old ways of thinking but reacting intelligently to circumstances does seem better than relying on plans that are based on simple extensions of the past.
Adaptations may be deliberate or non-deliberate. Adapting according to a condition does not necessarily mean a win. They may be success or not. There are adaptations that lead to failure for the entire social group. There are adaptations that allow the group to survive but leave people in a miserable situation. There are adaptations that improve the group’s situation in a desirable way. And there are adaptations that transcend the situation and create a whole new game.
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Everyday if we observe ourselves, we only want to adapt. If we are not able to play football we want our body to adapt accordingly. If we are bad in studies we want our brain to enhance itself. If we are bad at communication we want to be better at it. This way of thinking is not bad if we have the right knowledge.
Generally there are three basic steps for adapting to a situation:
- Recognizing the need to adapt: If no one recognizes a need or opportunity to adapt there can be no deliberate attempt to adapt. It’s possible that someone will accidentally change behaviour in a way that improves the situation, yet this cannot be relied upon.
- Understanding the adaptation required: Recognizing the need for adaptation is a good start, but there are many people that recognize problems without knowing what to do about them. They worry a lot about the need to make changes. They may want something different but still not know how to get what they want.
- Doing what is necessary to adapt: Out of laziness, it is fairly common for people to know what is necessary and still not do what it takes. They remain in their comfort zone and always want to remain stable.
Lastly, Some people may see adaptation as something that is being imposed on but the more you think it that way the more it will create pressure and try to push you down. Although there are points where adapting according to the situation might not be necessary, rather creating a new situation for adaptation is better for everyone. But we must not impose this condition on every part of life and sometimes accept the reality.
