Tipping Point

Tipping Point is one of my favorite books from my favorite author Malcolm Gladwell. Sometimes we spend our entire energy towards trying to make a change happen but nothing changes. At other times, when we least expect change, it sweeps through and through. Tipping point is about this unexpected change.

Does it mean, we should not try to make it happen, but rather just wait for the change to happen? I don’t think so. Even if our attempts don’t actually make the change happen, they do succeed in preparing us for the change. Let me try and explain this with some examples.

For years, I tried multiple exercise regimes, diet plans and counselling on how to lose weight. Did I lose it? No! Over a period, I gave up trying to lose weight but continued doing what I was doing without the stress of achieving an outcome. And you guessed it, I started losing weight. 

Another example – I tried to teach my daughter colors when she was young. I was at it for months and she simply refused to identify the colors. One day, I just gave up and accepted the fact that she was color blind. The very next day, she started identifying the colors bang on target.

So how does it happen? Why is it when we try so hard we don’t achieve the result, but when we just stop, the outcome is so easily achieved. Some theories- 

1. We don’t achieve the outcome because we don’t focus too much on the actions per se. We are just blinded by the expected outcome. It is like, not being able to see the present because we are living in the anticipated glory of the future. We need to concentrate on the action first, before we can enjoy the reward.

The Geeta says 

Karma kar, phal ki chinta mar kar.

Do the action, don’t worry about the fruits of the action. If your actions are right, the fruits are bound to come.

2. Some events or even personalities cause a huge impact and completely transform our way of thinking. These are catalysts to the change and are like the missing piece to the puzzle we have been trying to complete. 

3. Development Milestones are not only applicable to toddlers and children. As adults, we also have development milestones of maturity. The only difference is we don’t track our progress on these milestones. One day, unknown to ourselves, we reach the next milestone and things start to change. These are the Tipping Points of life, when we move to the next phase and events start appearing in a different light. All we can do is wait and watch for the signs when we will get there. 

If you didn’t understand this blog, don’t fret. Read it after a couple of years and perhaps you will be able to understand it then. 🙂