“Lasting change is a series of compromises”.
Jane Goodall
People consider an act of compromise as a sign of defeat. A shameful act of weakness.
They fight it with unrelenting energy and hold fast to their stubborn convictions to the bitter end.
They hate being wrong. They hate that you’re right.
The absolutely hate giving in. Accepting. Changing. Adjusting.
We hate it too.
Compromise is not for the faint of heart.
The act of compromise calls for a rare and abundant act of maturity. It calls for believing in something greater than ourselves. A passionate idea. A beautiful vision.
It calls for the courage to gaze at something greater than you. The embrace of something bigger than you.
And only then.
By taking an uncomfortable, regretful, retrograde step backward. Or perhaps by allowing others to leap ahead of you, will you arrive at lasting, meaningful change.
You can either be right, or you can be happy.
You can be right, or you can be married.
Change is easy. Lasting change requires compromise.
Compromise takes strength. It demands stamina and an openness to look foolish for a period of time. To appear defeated.
Laughed at. Dismissed. Ignored. Abandoned. Forgotten.
And while others spend a great deal of energy and their limited resources holding on to a shattered empire built on sand. Through compromise, you can rebuild the foundation of your own life and be happy.
Compromise give you a chance to retreat and regroup. To refocus and relearn. To understand and see what you missed the first or second time around.
Compromise allows you to help everyone, not just yourself.
Compromise is an act that offers everyone something better in return.
Compromise is the harbinger of lasting change.
The greatest act of kindness.
The only way to be.
