Despite being fairly open to change, I'm more practical in sticking with consistency, becoming persistent to the point of missing inflection points.
There's an element of comfort in routine, in knowing what works well enough, in the gradual accumulation of small efforts. This comfort sometimes isn't without a cost.
With consistency, change often happens gradually and we may miss on opportunities for rapid change, that speeds up our progress.
Those moments when a different approach, maybe, a new direction or a bold decision could collapse years of incremental advancement into months.
For example, maintaining a solid but uninspiring relationship when having the difficult conversation you've been avoiding could either transform it entirely or free you to find something more fulfilling.
Experientially, there's an element of half truth here too. Not unlike the debate between time in the market and timing the market.
Timing the market, which in this context can be equated with an opportunity for a massive change usually happens during distinct periods along life's journey.
Unless you're a fortune teller, prediction of these distinct periods is like finding a needle in a haystack. The odds are just not in your favor.
We can rarely anticipate when the opportunity for transformative change will present itself, which is precisely why consistency becomes our default strategy. Better play it predictable than precarious, right?"
I think being consistent puts one in a position to capitalize on this pivotal moment, but recognizing the moment isn't a given, in that our routines can blind us to emerging possibilities.
Consistency that builds our foundation for growth, can sometimes eventually calcify our perception, making us less likely to notice when the rules of the game have changed.
In hindsight, this is when I realize that I could've arrived at destination X in two years time instead of five years with my current trajectory.
For the most part, these realizations sting with the peculiar pain of seeing a "shortcut" only after you've taken the long road. But I guess it's evidently part of the learning process.
Somewhat Of A Cohesion
A different angle however, to look at this consistency or change dynamic is as complementary forces.
Consistency builds the necessary foundation for meaningful change to be possible through the skills, knowledge, relationships, and resources that are cultivated with incremental progress.
I've notice that one of the hallmarks of those who've stumbled on a shortcut without taking the long road first is almost all that they've gained through the shortcut can neither be maintained nor developed into something sustainable.
Without foundational consistency, change becomes merely erratic movement, lacking direction or purpose.
But at the same time, without periodic significant changes, consistency can become stagnation dressed as discipline.
I've come to believe that the most efficient path to growth usually involves long stretches of consistency punctuated by moments of profound change.
It's not that difficult to imagine that consistency creates the conditions that make recognizing and leveraging opportunities for change possible, even though we tend to attribute breakthroughs to luck rather than preparation.
Meanwhile, the openness to change prevents consistency from becoming rigidity, in the sense that it reminds us that consistency is a tool for growth, not an end in itself.
How can I maintain enough consistency to build something substantial while remaining attentive enough to recognize when change would serve me better?
The answer, I suspect, is no where to be found in my binary thinking mode, although the question itself reveals the false dichotomy I've created.
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