Yes, You Can Change the World: A Matter of Perspective

By Warren Wong

What if I told you that you can change the world? Changing the world is just a matter of perspective. Oftentimes, when we hear of stories that change the world we imagine a grand and elaborate act that sounds impossible for someone like you and I. That we’re just too normal, and insignificant to be able to enact the change that is required to “change the world”. Oddly enough, sometimes the world works in mysterious ways that can’t be defined by logic, but by sheer coincidence or rather by improbable chance.

Whether it’s a friend you lost so many years ago, reappearing back in your life after unforeseen circumstances or a serendipitous realization that you’re meant for more than just a cubicle for the rest of your life. These are real moments, and more common than we’d like to believe.

Changing the world isn’t just defined by headline breaking news: a new cancer treatment, a breakthrough in aerospace engineering, or a scientific discovery. They’re defined by seemingly small and insignificant actions compounded over a long enough timeline that they do change the world, but in such a non-linear way that we never realized we did in fact, change the world.

Many years ago, I made a difficult decision that adversely affected my own well-being and career in order to provide a once in a lifetime opportunity for a coworker. At the time, when I made the decision I felt a wash of fear all over my body, for I knew that to help him, I would be sacrificing myself. Many years later, I received a phone call from that friend. He thanked me for giving him the opportunity that ultimately set him up for success and gave him the opportunity to give back to the community.

If I didn’t receive that phone call, would I have known that my decision made such an impact? Most likely not, and this is the outcome of so many seemingly insignificant decisions and actions we make on a daily basis. If I didn’t allow my friend to take the opportunity, he more than likely would not have entered into a profession that is much needed and serves a vulnerable group, our veterans. I can’t say what the second and third order effects are, but I can surely argue that it did indeed change the world.

From that experience I realized that it’s possible to change the world and that our daily actions matter. Rather than focusing on changing the entire world, let’s start smaller; how can we enact change in our city, community, family, and friends? When we focus on what is within our control, we feel empowered to act, and that our actions, however small, do make all the difference.