But We've Always Done it This Way

When faced with a decision to make, it's tempting to pick the way we've always done something. It's safe. If it worked last time, why change it?

But this is a trap. Last year's success may no longer be possible in the same way, so even if we want to keep things the same, we have to change too.

To be clear, it's OK to decide to do something the same way we did it last time. But we should do so having first considered the alternatives and opportunity costs.

Trying to keep everything the same comes from a place of fear. Change is associated with risk, and most of us would like to limit uncertainty as much as possible.

But embracing the possiblity of change allows us to make the decisions that lead to success. And when that success lasts long enough for us to look back and say, "But we've always done it this way," we can pause to remind ourselves that nothing lasts forever.