It
sounds rather profound, perhaps a little dramatic and certainly impactful.
The
world changed
Three
words which conjure up different images to different people. I asked some
friends, colleagues and contacts what these three words made them think
of. I wasn't prescriptive in my question, I said the answer could be
absolutely anything - whatever sprung to mind. Here are the responses I
received:
•
Hearing a new idea
•
The day you met the person you
love
•
Technology
•
Development of penicillin
•
September 11th 2001
•
Tsunami
•
Technological advances
•
When someone died
•
A major event
•
The discovery of something that changed
the way we thought, behaved, worked or understood
•
Government changes
•
Getting divorced
•
Climate change
•
Major event in world history
•
Societal changes triggered by
technological advance
•
Having a baby
•
The 20th Century
•
Something bad happening and people being
projected to act differently as a result
•
Changing job
•
Innovation in technology
•
When the world seems different going
forward ie: meeting someone new
•
WWI
•
WWII
•
Gulf war
•
Publication of the Bible
•
Disaster
•
Presidential election
•
Storyline or dramatic fiction
•
"It probably won't affect me"
•
Something life-changing happening to an
individual
•
Telecoms
•
When Heinz introduced squeezey ketchup
bottles
•
Development of the aeroplane
•
"When I started looking at it
differently"
•
An event in history that dramatically
changed the views / psychology / geography / beliefs or lives of a
significantly large number whether it be people or something else such as
dinosaurs
•
Personal life-milestones
•
Invention of the printing press
•
"I wish it would"
•
Progression
•
The internet
•
Change is good - not 'like before'
•
Darwin publishing 'On the Origin of
Species' (24th November 1859)
•
Apple launching the iPhone
Some answers
were given multiple times and some with slight variations. I was delighted to
receive such a range of responses describing what these three simple
words mean to people. Some were good, some were bad. Some were personal, others
were global. Some were looking outward while others were looking inward at
oneself. Change is open to interpretation on every level and no two instances
can be compared. It can also have far reaching and often unintended
consequences. Even the smallest of changes can shift the world on its axis for
those affected and yet change is often misunderstood or in some cases avoided
at all costs.
When
I think about what The World Changed means to me, I think of the moments when
something significant dawned on me. A moment of realisation. The moment
when you know something has shifted, something that maybe cannot be undone,
leading to a new way forward or a whole new world of possibilities suddenly
opening up. I wrote a blog post elsewhere earlier this year titled "The
World Changed" and got over 2,000 views on the post on that day
alone and an unbelievable response from people, some complete
strangers, all over the world. Something changed a little for me that day
and inspired me to recognise that when the world changes, in whatever way,
whether big or small, it is always relevant.
Working
within the world of corporate change has given me some valuable frameworks from
which to hang my own experiences and has helped me to, not only embrace change
in all it's forms, but to actively seek it out.
Thanks
to these respondents I am able to confidently say that this blog is not going
to be restricted to looking at any one particular type of change. Here I will
share theories, ideas and stories relating to change in any form - no
matter how tenuously related. If you have a story to share which you think is
relevant then please do get in touch as guests blogs are very welcome.
Everybody
wants to change the world but nobody wants to change...