The sight of people who have given up all enthusiasm toward their occupation and surrendered to their circumstances isn’t rare. What causes that?
One thing is for sure that it doesn’t happen in an instance.
Chances are, the folks with dead eyes were as lively as anybody else at some point – but then they were met with cold resistance, their optimism crumbled, and they faced an unexpected reality.
Soon, they joined the crowd.
Their hunger died.
They started doing things the way all others were doing them.
Why?
Not just because of external influences but also because of internal complacency and the unwillingness to move.
They get used to it.
It all remains the same … until somebody reminds them of what they wanted to be and why they had started in the first place. The kind of stuff that makes them see the spark they once had.
They might look at an intern and think “Damn, I used to be that once,” or “…that sort of overenthusiasm doesn’t hurt.”
If you can do this, it’s a good thing
Even if you’re an ordinary person in a big organization – show up with a spark (or at least try to), be fond of the tasks at hand, and bring your own perspective with it.
Who knows, whatever you do might cast a magic spell and set the rusty wheels of joy in motion again. It wouldn’t be surprising if somebody gets inspired by you.
What we do is contagious.
So why not use that influence as a catalyst? You’re always setting an example
Do something that makes the people around you introspect about what they’re doing and makes them think of the changes that they’d want to bring.
- Make them dissatisfied with their standards
- Make them afraid of not adapting
- Shake their complacency
- Question their authority
- Induce restlessness in them
- Sow a seed of change
What would that do?
Create space for hope and steer things they way they’re supposed to be, for better.