Are You A Perfect Fit?

We have often heard this idiom “A square peg in a round hole” which simply means that a person is unsuitable or unqualified, to handle a particular job or serve a particular position. We also come across so many people in our daily lives, who are not able to cope up with the many changes happening in the society and we call them a “social misfit”. Am I right?

Now it is time to question ourselves as to how perfectly do we fit into the current world?

We are all aware that, not all that is happening in this world is as per our wish or our way of thinking. We have a set of rules in our mind, as to how the world should operate and keep endorsing the events happening in the world as either, right or wrong. We are constantly judging people and condemning them of their behaviour, if it is not in accordance to our convictions. We comment upon someone’s dressing style as inappropriate or we are sceptical about relationships which don’t fall into the framework of our ideology. For example, intercaste marriages were seen as wrong in the past but marriage of the same sexes, are now becoming legal. We see more women in the pubs, than before. What was once a man’s thing, now seems to be common for both men and woman. Though these things feel shocking to us, this is the new reality.

There are so many value based differences, which is a cause of conflict between the younger and older generation. Old values don’t seem to sync with the youngster and the values of the youngsters seems outrageous and unacceptable to the previous generation. Haven’t we seen people talk about the “Good old days” when everything was in good order. They tend to look back at the glorious past and wish it could return - the values, the culture, the relationships and so on. But thing are not going to return to what it was before. A quote by Oliver Wendell Holmes, goes like this, “One’s mind, once stretched by a new idea, never regains its original dimensions”. The same applies to all aspects of human evolution, because evolution itself is nothing more than an idea.

So, does our opinion really matter to the world?  Unfortunately, it seems not.

The world is changing at a rapid pace and it doesn’t bother whether you approve of it or not. It is we who have to change to fit into the world and not the way around. If we can’t fit into the world, we too would soon be called a misfit.

I am not endorsing that whatever is happening in this world is going in the right direction, but what I am saying is that most of the changes happening are irreversible, like the river, which twists and turns on its path, but only moves forward. So, it doesn’t really makes sense to brood over the current situation, by glorifying the past. It would rather be wise to accept the new changes and see how best we can operate in this new environment. Instead of seeing this as cultural deterioration, it is time to look at it as a cultural change. This would help us to find peace with ourselves.

Moreover, this change is going to be constant. So, we need to periodically validate ourselves in the context of the changes happening around us, and update ourselves to the world and the people who share the time space in this planet with us. It is about being open to unpopular ideas, being broadminded and be willing to widen our perspectives.

Time to ask yourself, “Am I a perfect fit, in this evolving world?” 

   D. Senthil Kannan,

   Managing Trustee, PALMS, Tuticorin.

   Author of "Transformational Thoughts" - A Journey of learning 

   Email: senthilkannand@gmail.com