Adjusting to Change

How the Mayor of New York failed to see the up-side of change

by Tyson Steele

Change (read that "improvement") is inevitable. Often, however, we have difficulty adjusting to progress. New processes, techniques and procedures can be viewed by doctors and staff as unsettling at first, but they inevitably become "routine."

In fact, many of our clients tell us that they don't even know how they did business without a morning huddle, hand-written notes and staff meeting agendas.

The next time you're faced with a "new" idea, consider former governor of New York, Martin Van Buren, who wrote this to the President in 1829:

"The canal system of this country is being threatened by the spread of a new form of transportation known as 'railroads' . . . As you may well know, railroad carriages are pulled at the enormous speed of 15 miles per hour by engines, which, in addition to endangering the life and limb of passengers, roar and snort their way through the countryside. The Almighty certainly never intended that people travel at such breakneck speed."