You’ve probably heard the saying, “A bird in the hand is worth two in the bush.” That’s supposed to mean that we can maintain safety and manage risk by keeping what we have now. I don’t hunt outdoors, so I have no idea if that saying is true. However, in my experience, I have not […]
How Can We Choose to Drop What We Have Now to Get Something Better? Read More »
This is Johanna Rothman’s July 2025 Create an Adaptable Life Newsletter. The unsubscribe link is at the bottom of this email. Last week, Mark and I were on vacation in Key West. While we were there, we took several wind-and-wine sailing trips. At the end of each sail, the crew passes out dark Dove chocolate
How Can You Manage Your Feelings to Start a New Chapter? Read More »
We’ve all heard that freedom isn’t free. We have to work and fight for it. But too often, we hear the “fight” part and not the “work” part. That means we start to choose just one of two alternatives (yours vs mine) instead of looking for more options. Worse, we might think that freedom is
Which Freedoms Will You Work and Fight For? Read More »
As a consultant, I work with people who have plenty of problems. (No one calls a consultant when things are going well.) Many of these nice people feel as if they should be able to find a simple and direct solution to their problems. Simple and direct solutions assume we know enough about the risks
How Can We Move from Craving Simple Direct Solutions to Adapting with Experiments? Read More »
Salespeople have an infamous mantra, “Always be closing.” That phrase has several meanings: Close the sale for the salesperson. Close the options for the buyer, so they don’t continue to look for alternatives. High-integrity sales work well for both the buyer and the salesperson. But notice that there’s no adaptability there. The situation closes. Instead
Three Secrets to Make “Always Be Changing” Our Personal Focus Read More »
Have you ever had a long-term disagreement with someone else? I’m going to discuss something small: when to take the garbage out for garbage day. (Talk about a first-world problem!) Our garbage day is Wednesday and nothing about our pickup is predictable. The current garbage company picks up the recycling and the actual garbage at
What Would Have to Be True for That Outcome to Occur? Read More »
Despite all the uncertainty we see these days, some people still value predictions and certainty over adaptability and resilience. Then, when their predictions and certainty don’t work, these folks suddenly value adaptability. When we show others the value of our flexibility, we don’t surprise ourselves with fake certainty. We can, especially if we show others
Three Ways to Show Others the Value of Your Adaptability and Resilience Read More »
Three Secrets to Exercise Your Resilience Do you feel as if you can’t predict anything from one day to the next—except that we’ll still be in the pandemic for a while? Predictions aren’t my strong suit, so that’s as much as I’ll predict. We’re in this situation for a while. However, I can be pretty
Three Secrets to Exercise Your Resilience Read More »
I follow lots of rules. I stay inside my lane on the highway. I wear my socks inside in—or, if you will, outside out. I always take my medication and I always take it the way I am supposed to. I even floss at night, the way my dentist tells me to do so. But
Which Rules Should You Break? Read More »