Sep
Move It or Solve It
I had a friend who had a penchant for trouble. He got the idea that the cause of his woes might be the people in his neighborhood. His solution was to move to a nicer town with more pleasant people. My friend believed that the lack of troublemakers would solve the problem.
He moved into a large town a few hundred miles away. Things were pleasant and he liked the peace. It fit him, or so he thought. Within a month he was acquainted with every troublemaker, miscreant and never-do-well in town. It did not take long to make things too hot for himself, and so he moved again. He picked another town that looked even nicer than the first.
Once again, my friend liked the peace and cordial air of the new town. Once again, within a month he knew every troublemaker in town. He made things too hot for himself and moved again. The process repeated itself several times. Finally he came back to his home town, resigned to the fact that he could not escape trouble.
The real problem was that wherever he went, he brought himself with him. Just as water seeks its own level, and birds of a feather flock together, so like seeks like. Moving to get away from trouble is known as the “geographic cure.” It rarely works. Then only way it can work is if the person changes himself before he moves.
The only way to make a positive change is to solve your problem. You have to stop doing the things that get you into trouble. Nothing can happen until the problem ceases to perpetuate itself. The other half of the solution is to develop those traits and talents that improve you. It all begins with you.
