Conservatism vs Progressivism
Posted on January 04, 2017 by KC Hildreth, One of Thousands of Executive Coaches on Noomii.
Change need not be dangerous or scary. We can grow and be safe at the same time!
Every living thing, indeed every single cell in our natural world, has two basic impulses. The first is to conserve itself by maintaining its boundaries and form…essentially to stay alive and intact. The second impulse is to grow by ’pushing the envelope’ on what is possible…as seen in risk taking, creative thinking and the testing of new possibilities.
You can see these two impulses in everything around you, from the way children push boundaries to how countries defend their borders. Our human political systems have a range of ‘parties’ that reflect the growth vs. conservation approach: On one side is the liberal/progressive/radical, and on the other is the conservative/traditional/stable. You can even see it in our ancient past: Billions of years ago single-celled entities took a ‘risk’ and combined with other entities to formed what eventually became the complex life forms we see today.
Every living thing in our world, including you, chooses between conservation and growth in every moment. Take that new job or stay where you are? Get married or stay single? Leave your home town or stay with what you know? Learn something new or rely on your existing knowledge? You experience these evolutionary forces every day.
The larger question is: How can you grow and stay safe at the same time? What can you do to consciously expand yourself and accelerate your growth…while also feeling comfortable and OK with what is? This is the human challenge. Cells, plants and animals generally follow the flow of their lives: Some test new modalities and others just keep where they are. But you have a choice…you can choose to expand yourself and at the same time stay safe.
How do you choose to expand? Are notions about ‘staying safe’ a reality or just an excuse not to take risks? You can accelerate your evolution if you choose…so make your choices conscious and explicit! Conserve where necessary and expand where possible…and above all, let go of your fear!
