Can you be too adaptable?

That question was put to me the other day after I’d said ‘those who embrace change are progressing, and those who don’t are regressing’. I’d failed to realise that this could be interpreted as ‘all change is good and all resistance is bad’. Which sounds like some Orwellian mantra from Animal Farm.

Some people think ‘smart’ phones have proven themselves to be anything but, and they’re switching back to so-called ‘feature’ phones (and please can we not call them dumb-phones because dumb doesn’t mean the opposite of smart, it means unable to speak – which is half the purpose of a phone!). In other words, not everyone believes that just because technology can, we should.

Since the first Industrial Revolution we’ve adopted so much change in the way we live that it’s become unsustainable. So clearly not all change has been good. But the question is, did that happen because we were too adaptable?

What do you reckon?

On the one hand, the Resistors could argue that had we been less adaptable, we wouldn’t have embraced change with such uncontrolled speed that has led us to this point of consuming our planet faster than we’re replenishing it. Or being glued to the internet wherever there’s a signal for that matter. Our resistance to change evolved to protect us, and overcoming this defence mechanism that preserved our species for 50,000 years has left us standing on a burning platform.

On the other hand, the Embracers could argue that adaptability is about being open to the idea of change; giving change a fair objective hearing, free from our primal reaction to resist first and ask questions later. Rejecting bad change for good reasons – like unsustainable manufacturing – demonstrates key qualities of adaptability, namely curiosity and courage, rather than blindly accepting any change. Taking calculated balanced risks based on key relevant factors (and the triple bottom line of planet, people and profit would be a great place to start) is progressive. Not taking any risks is regressive. And taking uncalculated unbalanced risks is just plain wreckless.

Here’s what I reckon.

Can you go too far in embracing any change? Yes. Feature phoners would certainly say that about smart-phone technology. And most people would say that about the more recent Industrial Revolutions. So does that mean you can be too adaptable? No you can’t. Why? Because you can never be too curious or courageous to evaluate whether doing something or nothing different is the most progressive way forward.

Rich Alderton from High Performance Change is an Adaptability Intelligence specialist, so why not contact Rich for an initial discussion?