Change until the world gives way to you

Chapter 6 Get rid of the old past and create a new future (1)
In the past, we no longer care whether you stood on the mountain peak overlooking all living beings in full swing, or passed newspaper after newspaper in the streets and alleys.The important thing is you who are presented in front of us now, because the past is only the background, at most it can be reserved for future memories, and at this time, you can only stand at this point and continue to move forward according to your own wishes To see the sun tomorrow...

Different endings of old-fashioned and innovative
Each of us will have a past, but not everyone likes our past. If we are not satisfied with the past, or the past has made you feel no joy, then at this time, will you choose to keep the old or innovate?Let's take a look at the story first:
The story comes from the documentary "The Bear Family" filmed by the American Discovery Channel and won many international awards such as CableACE and Wildlife:
A long time ago, in the forests of the northern temperate zone, there lived a group of bears.They rely on lush trees and sufficient food to thrive in this forest.With the passage of time and the change of climate, the surrounding environment is slowly changing.

One day, the forest was struck by lightning, causing a fire, and the animals ran for their lives.After the bears escaped from the forest, they began to discuss their future plans.

After a heated debate, the group of bears finally split into two groups: one group chose to "go north" and live in the frigid edge of the Arctic Circle; the other group chose to "go south" and came to today's warm and humid Sichuan Basin .

This choice made the two groups of brothers embark on completely different paths of destiny...

The bears living near the North Pole not only did not freeze to death, but quickly adapted to the climate there.In the extremely cold weather, in order to survive, they began to learn to swim, dive and prey on fish and shrimps in the icy sea water, and sometimes even dared to hunt seals and walruses that were about the same size as them; in the winter of more than 40 degrees below zero, they Learned to hibernate on the ground...

Years later, they became stronger and braver than before, their body hair thickened a lot, and their body color blended with the ice and snow of the North Pole, turning into a dazzling white.

Thus, this group of bears became the iconic animals of the Arctic that we often see on TV.polar bear.

After another group of bears came to the Sichuan Basin, they were pampered and lived a comfortable life.

However, the good times didn't last long, and they faced a serious survival crisis-the carnivores here developed after a period of growth.Start competing with them for food.Compared with tigers, lions, wolves and other carnivorous animals, the physical fitness of bears has obvious advantages, but their long-term comfortable life has made their physical fitness worse and worse. In the end, they cannot be beaten or snatched.In order not to starve to death, the group of bears had no choice but to eat bamboo instead of meat.Therefore, the hard and unpalatable bamboo helped the bears survive.

Gradually, they got used to bamboo as their only food source.Because other animals disdain to compete with them for this "junk food", they naturally eat and drink without worry, and become more lazy and bloated.The body color has also changed from the original taupe to the current "black and white".

Later, this group of bears was discovered by humans.Seeing their cuteness, human beings decide to protect them as pets and "national treasures", and send them abroad as a symbol of friendship to "immigrate" from time to time.Their names have also changed: from "bear" to "panda".

Today, with the reduction of bamboo forests, the number of pandas has also been greatly reduced and they are on the verge of extinction.Thanks to the love of human beings, they barely live a "bear-like".Not only is there no need to worry about food and clothing, but he also enjoys thinking about "Shu".

However, are they still real bears?
After reading this story, do you feel emotional: Pandas and polar bears are "born from the same root", just like two brothers in the same family. Why are their final destinies so different?

If we think about it carefully, it is not difficult for us to find that it all lies in their choice: follow the old ways or challenge innovation.

The ancestors of polar bears probably knew the importance of the environment, so they resolutely chose the Arctic, which is suitable for competition, as their foothold.Although the weather in the Arctic is cold and the environment is harsh, it can objectively temper them and make them stronger.

In contrast, the panda's ancestors seemed short-sighted, they just coveted the warm sunshine and comfortable life in the south.So when competition arises, they are unable to make changes, and they still accept it, do not think about making progress, and go directly from the top of the food chain to the bottom.If it weren't for the "idolization" of appearance that is favored by human beings, I am afraid that they have completely disappeared in nature.

In fact, all creatures are members of nature, and no one can escape the shackles and constraints of the environment.Not only pandas and polar bears, biologists have done the same experiment countless times:
Put two creatures of the same type in different environments.One lives in a comfortable and safe environment with easy access to food and water without effort; the other lives in a relatively harsh environment and can only obtain food through continuous effort.

The final results were surprisingly consistent: the former died quickly, and the latter often lived very well.

On the other hand, the ending of that documentary is equally intriguing:

Today, polar bears in Canada are in an extremely difficult situation-due to frequent starvation, their resistance is getting weaker and weaker.The reason is mainly due to changes in the environment - the global greenhouse effect, human overfishing of marine fish, making it difficult for them to obtain food as easily as before.According to a recent research report completed by scientists from the Canadian Wildlife Service, in recent years, the water temperature in the Arctic Circle region has increased year by year, which has accelerated the melting rate of glaciers and shortened the hibernation time of local polar bears.At the same time, the hunting season has also been shortened accordingly - in the past 20 years, it has been shortened by a full month, which has led to the gradual deterioration of the polar bear's physique.Polar bears who can't eat are forced to break into a town near West Hudson Bay and eat junk food from the streets.Although today's polar bears look docile and cute, for the safety of people's lives, local residents still take various methods to drive them away, although the effect is not obvious...

The destinies of the two brothers are so different. One retains the past habits and survives as a "national treasure" rare animal. While the polar bear is proud of its transformation, it also faces a new choice-continue to challenge itself Still indulging in the current way.

French existentialist philosopher Sartre put forward three principles:

One is "existence precedes essence", which holds that human "existence" comes first and "essence" comes after. "First of all, it is the existence, appearance, and appearance of people, and then it explains itself." The so-called existence is first of all the existence of "self", which is "the existence felt by oneself". If I do not exist, everything does not exist.The so-called "existence precedes essence" means that "self" precedes essence, that is to say, man's "self" determines his own essence.

The second is "the world is absurd, and life is painful."It is absurd to think that in this "subjective" society, there must be conflicts, struggles and cruelty between people, full of ugliness and crimes.And man is just a suffering person in this absurd and cruel situation. The world can only give people endless depression, disappointment, pessimism and negativity, and life is painful.As with the poor, so with the rich.

The third is "free choice".This is the essence of existentialism.The core of existentialism is freedom, that is, people are absolutely free when they choose their own actions.It believes that in this world, everyone has their own freedom, and they can make "free choices" about what actions to take and how to take actions in the face of various environments. "If existence does precede essence, man can never explain his actions with reference to a known or specific human nature, in other words, there is no determinism—man is free. Man is freedom." Sartre believes, In the face of things, if a person cannot make a "free choice" according to his personal will, this kind of person has lost his individuality and "self", and cannot be regarded as a real existence.

Choice is free, especially for the choice of survival, we all have our own set of principles, and correspondingly we have to be responsible for our own choices, the continuation of the past is likely to narrow the space for our existence, and in the face of ignorance In the future, our survival has infinite possibilities.Instead of taking a step back and staying safe, it is better to take a step forward and change the status quo.

let the past go with the wind

The German philosopher Schopenhauer mentioned such an idea in "The Wisdom of Life": "People must learn to choose an appropriate point between the past, present and future of the time axis. We cannot be too close to the past, nor too close to the past." To be close to the future, we should be closest to the present without completely abandoning the past and the future.” Schopenhauer regarded time as a divisible whole, looked at the past, present and future from the appearance of the will of the world, and in essence hoped that we Find a suitable point for yourself at every moment. You can neither linger on the past nor look forward to the future in vain. Only by finding the middle point between the three, that is, the present, is the wisdom of life to do things.Then, your past will inevitably go with the wind, and from our minds, it can only become a memory, so that we can do a good job in the current work and efficiently plan for the next step.

Now, if you are successful and famous, you can only say that you are lucky, but don’t be immersed in yesterday’s honor, you still need to persist; if you still have nothing, don’t be discouraged, as long as you make up your mind to change yourself , Change the shackles of the past, life will no longer deceive you, it will give you a brand new start.

Except for babies in swaddling clothes, children who put aside their innocent childhood, no matter who they are, they will always have the past stored in their memory. After entering the stage of youth, who can avoid unpleasant experiences?Study, work, life, love, maybe there will be some unpleasant experiences at any stage.I used to feel inferior because of poor study; I used to complain because of unsatisfactory test results; I used to suffer a lot of pain because of a broken relationship; After waking up, I feel more sadness and helplessness. All the past may be seen in different stages. In this period, when I can't let go, these things are like a heavy burden, and I can't breathe.These are all human beings. It is understandable to be depressed and sad for a while, but it is unwise to indulge in it too much.Don't let the past be a burden, but let it be a life experience, a learning experience.

In the following two examples, this may be the cause of failure:
Story [-]:

Henry Ford, founder of the Ford Motor Company in the United States.

At the age of 16, he left the farm of his hometown in Michigan, USA, and ventured into the world alone.With excellent professional mechanical skills, he became a senior engineer at Detroit Edison in his 20s.However, his strong love for cars made him give up this superior job and comfortable living environment, and began to develop new cars.After more than ten years of struggle, it was not until the age of 40 that Ford Motor Company was truly established.

In 1908, Henry Ford's "masterpiece across the ages".The black Model T finally hit the market.It is recognized as the "ancestor" of American private cars, and eventually made the United States a "country on wheels".

From 1910 to 1930, it was a glorious period for Ford.Ford's sales accounted for half of the world's total car production during this period, and it once became the world's largest car company.During this period, Ford continued to refresh a series of epoch-making records in the automotive field.Peter Drucker once wrote in his book: "The real revolution is not the Soviet planned economy, but Henry Ford's idea of ​​mass production."

Ford was so successful, but apparently he had long forgotten.Absolute success often hides a huge crisis behind it.

After the success, Ford became more stubborn and extreme. He insisted on producing only black Model T cars and opposed competition as always.As a result, in 1927, Ford had to "death" his beloved black Model T, and the entire company stopped production for a year.Due to the hasty production change, huge cost, and the ensuing Great Depression, Ford's vitality was severely damaged, and it failed to recover throughout the 30s, and was surpassed by General Motors and Chrysler respectively.

Later, after working hard to catch up, it finally gained a foothold in the "National Second" position, but the days of being the number one in production are long gone.

In 1947, Ford died a tragic death.The company's operations went from bad to worse, and it was on the verge of bankruptcy.

Fortunately, Ford's grandson "Henry Ford II" took the lead in time and inherited the ancestral business.He re-hired a group of outstanding talents, made timely changes and adjustments, and after several years of hard work, brought Ford back to life and reached new heights.However, the successful "Ford II" still couldn't help sticking to the rules, repeating the mistakes of his grandfather, and was finally forced to resign as chairman, ending the Ford family's 70-year ruling history.Ford changed hands.

Story [-]:
IBM, the American business machine company, has long been synonymous with the computer industry and is honored as the "Blue Giant".For more than half a century, it has been the "big boss" in the industry, and it has played a decisive role in what it says.Whether in the United States or the world, its influence is unprecedented.We know that Microsoft's success has a lot to do with IBM's help.Even Bill Gates admitted: "My success is directly related to IBM."

In the 20s, IBM entered its peak period: it occupied more than 70% of the market share of the computer market. In terms of scale and status, it far surpassed General Electric and other established companies in the American business community, and it was the leader.

In the 20s, although the U.S. economy was in recession, IBH's after-tax income doubled.Of course, honors follow one after another with performance, such as "the most valuable American company" and "the most admired company".

The continuous success has made IBM overly confident: the company has a well-thought-out plan for any problem, the products it produces are always the best in the industry, the after-sales department is also the best in the industry, and its employees are extremely capable...

This was followed by a "new wave" of PCs that had become popular in the mid-80s.However, IBM didn't take it seriously. President Watson even said proudly: There is no doubt that (the future) is the mainframe! It would be great if PCs could sell 5 units within 5 years!

As a result, IBM blindly insisted on producing mainframes regardless of the reduction in mainframe prices and profits, thus achieving the "overnight riches" of Microsoft, Intel and other companies; a heavy burden. From the 20s to the 60s, its workforce soared from 80 to 10.

Still, it set an unrealistic goal of growing revenue from $400 billion to $1000 billion.

As a result, strategic and management mistakes, and blind arrogance caused it to lose a total of nearly 90 billion US dollars in the early 50s, which severely damaged its vitality and faced the fate of being split.

If it wasn't for Gerstner's timely appearance at this time, the blue giant might really fall apart!
1993.Gerstner's first move after taking office was a large-scale layoff (more than 3 people were fired at one time).

(End of this chapter)