WHO MOVED MY CHEESE?

                                          

                                            

The dynamics of change are indeed difficult to apprehend; one has to consider the attitudes of the people who will accept it, how persistent the change will be, and how the people leading the change will behave. As I sat down to document this, a few things happened in the real world. Thomas Cook went down in history as bankrupt. 

The media was abuzz with lessons to be learnt from its failures and with its non-conformity to present-day requirements to serve its clients. True, it is well said by Darwin, “it is not the strongest of the species that survives, or the most intelligent; it is the one most adaptable to change”.

An extension of this change was imposed upon us by the spread of the novel Corona virus 19, taking a toll of thousands and infecting lakhs all over the world. The deadly pandemic virus is throttling many economies, pushing many into unimaginable situations and even inflicting atrocities upon them.

This change in our lifestyles, our mindsets, our jobs, earning and saving patterns, nothing seems to be able to relate to its past glory.  We have become more decentralized since the lockdown began. This is the dawn of a new era. This current situation reminds me of Sniff and Scurry. I was thinking about this book by Spencer Johnson, “Who Moved My Cheese?” It's core about anticipating and preparing for change, overcoming fears, envisioning success, and enjoying changes.

Sniff and Scurry were smart individuals who, irrespective of their current situation, were on the lookout for a more conducive environment where they could flourish. I, too, started to look up and invest in myself, reading, consulting, and analyzing even more than before.  I would rather not be like Hem and Haw and die in obscurity. I decided to learn new skills, and there could be no better way than to express myself digitally.

This digital age offers many opportunities to most of us, as long as we meet it head-on. My contribution to this formidable era has been quite insignificant till a thought prompted me to take on creative writing. So writing a blog seemed the simplest. It definitely was, as long as I never got down writing it. There was a rapid fire of ideas for the topic on which I could choose to write, but, seriously speaking, nothing concrete came on this page. A trash can was the real beneficiary, swelling day after day with sheets of torn paper.

Nevertheless, determined as I was to dish out a wonderful piece, my venture undiminished by my grit, enthusiasm, and passion to be a solopreneur, I walked the lonely road ahead.

Professionally, I am a dentist (yes! I continue to be one today too). My seniors said Dentistry is “Art and Science.” Well, now I think that everything is art and science, including writing. If one does not like my writing or art, one does not see it, and the alchemy of words that I use makes it a lesser-known science. Wow! That makes my indulgences in a sister profession to a certain extent quite daring. 

Am I looking for a new niche, other than dentistry, behind this façade of creative writing? I am not sure whether I would like it to be my profession, a hobby, or just a fleeting reference. Suddenly, my cellphone rings, and my nursing staff informs me of a waiting patient. I close the page, the computer, and gather myself to be in my clinic.

But one thing is sure, I am slowly but steadily moving to a new beginning.