Creating Change

In order to make any real changes in the world you’ve got to get a lot of people involved. Most of us won’t play critical roles in the changes that society faces in our lifetimes, and most of the changes will seem to happen without our involvement at all. But that’s okay because not everyone needs to be a die hard for progress to be made.

Sometimes though, a problem comes along that is big enough or that we believe in enough that we feel the need to do something about it. We might not know what the solution is or we might feel like solving the problem is overwhelming. This is a common reaction that all people can feel when confronted with a problem whose solution seems external to them.

Some people will choose to make small changes in their lives. Maybe they change the products they buy, the things they teach their children. Maybe they give a little bit of money to someone working for their cause, or maybe they change the way they vote. Maybe they simply try to change the way that they treat people.

Some people will make bigger changes. They might volunteer for the cause. They may change jobs or move to a new place. They might go back to school or spend time trying to convince others to believe in the cause as well. They might organize a local group to start a discussion about the cause.

Some people will be in a better position to generate change than others. People who are in positions of power may not be aware of all the problems facing the world. They may feel just as powerless to make a change if they feel as though there is no support or calling for such a change. They may not know enough about the problem to know what solutions are best to pursue. Even with all of those obstacles - they might be receptive to working for change if that change is something they believe in.

For the vast majority of us who are not in a great position to create change, we can support those can. We can do this in many different forms. We can help to convince others to also support those in power. We can directly offer our support to those people. Or we can lead by example by following our beliefs in the sincere hope that others will follow suit. We can help to convince others who are not convinced yet. If the facts are on your side, you can always eventually win through honesty, integrity and humility.

The point is that we each have some way to help create the world we envision. Just because our professions may seem tangential or our ability to contribute may seem small – each person can genuinely help.

If you feel like progress is happening too slowly, but are unwilling or unable to increase how much of your life you are giving towards a cause – instead of losing hope, concentrate on supporting others higher than you or on building the number of people on your side. Any genuine legitimate action is superior to inaction. When everybody participates - things really do change.