A bat fell to the ground and was caught by a house-ferret. Realizing that she was on the point of being killed, she begged for her life. The house-ferret said to her that she couldn’t let her go, for ferrets were supposed to be natural enemies to all birds. The bat replied that she herself was not a bird, but a mouse. She managed to extricate herself from her danger by this means.
Eventually, falling a second time, the bat was caught by another house-ferret. Again she pleaded to the ferret not to eat her. The second ferret declared that she absolutely detested all mice. But the bat positively affirmed that she was not a mouse but a bat. And so she was released again.
And that was how she saved herself from death twice by a mere change of name.
Isn't that funny? Yes it is. But even at that funny story, there's still a very important lesson that we all have to learn in adaptation.
Now, what does adaptation means in this context? This simply means the act of changing something, example your behavior, to suit a new environment.
Most animals and plants have adaptive skills which keeps them out of danger when activated. Now, as human beings, we should be aware that our lives will constantly be on the danger of getting wiped off the face of this earth. Therefore, we must at all times be ready to keep our lives out of danger.
Now, let's get back to the story cause they are many things I want to straighten out. Here was a bat caught twice and in danger of being eaten, he had to get himself out of that position. So, she played the only card in her hands and that was faking to be someone else with a different name. What she did was to assumed a personality that will keep her life longer. A typical 'when in Rome, do as the Roman' kinda situation.
You must have learned from when you were young that you should always stand out from the crowd. Isn't it so? But the dangers of standing out is that you will be cut off. In the olden days when the power of life and death were in the hands of the king, those who stood out at the wrong time usually have their heads on the spike - and they were mostly good men.
Times have changed. Kings can no longer just sentence people to death as they wish. But when time change, does human nature change too? Sadly no. Robert Greene once wrote
Do not appear to be too straightforward. Go and see the forest. The straight trees are cut down first for timbers, the crooked ones are left standing till they grow old and die on their own for firewood.
This might have gone against your belief. Hear me out first. When you plan to stand out, the act of timing is very important. You must know when to blend in and when the time is right, you can start your uprising and stand for what you believe. Do this prematurely and you will just be a martyr for nothing.
Now back to the issue at hand. This topic isn't only for warlike situations. It is something that should be in our heart every single second that we breath on this planet. Job skills do become obsolete. How prepare are you for the future when what you knew no longer holds true or valid. Most will choose to fight in the past trying to make people believe they knew something. But those who are wise will steer their ships in the new direction of life.
For example, blockchain is challenging traditional centralized systems. Most of us are on the Steem blockchain but only see Steemit as a social media platform. Have you asked yourself if you need to change your name and your skills to be prepared for the future? Have you asked yourself how this new trend will affects the current industry that you are operating in? You need to know these things to better prepare yourself for the future.
This is where I'll stop today. Do remember, those who are not ready to adapt or who are not skilled enough to adapt do face extinction. Don't be like the dinosaurs.
All images used in this article are creative commons from Pixabay.