Experiencing a Paradigm Shift isn't as painful as it sounds.  In fact, I bet we all experience them all the time.  Thomas Khun first used the term in 1962 to describe a basic change in the assumptions behind a given theory.  I experienced a paradigm shift some years ago as a student when the roof had blown off of our student house during a particularly bad storm.

I tried to call my landlord to tell him that the house had sustained some damage, and it needed urgent repairs.  Water was leaking into the electrics making the house dangerous and cold.  We had no hot water for showers, so life was becoming very uncomfortable.  I tried and tried to get hold of my landlord, but to no avail.  Becoming more and more frustrated, my rage was growing by the day.

When I eventually got hold of him I didn't hold back. I told him how lazy he was, what an uncaring landlord he was, how he never answered his phone, how this whole situation was intolerable, and that he had to get something done immediately.  I let him have it all, and I didn't stop to breathe.

Imagine my reaction after such an outburst when he apologised for not having been available, but this was because his father had passed away and he had spent many long hours at the hospital by his father's bed.  I just wanted to turn back time and take back my angry words.  I had experienced a paradigm shift.  My basic assumptions were that he was lazy and didn't care.

But when these basic assumptions were changed, this altered my entire outlook on the situation.  Sympathy now replaced rage.  My anger turned to concern, and I began to feel embarrassment at my reaction.  Suddenly, I was in the wrong, and my landlord wasn't such a bad guy afterall.

I was to undergo a further paradigm shift a week or so later when I read in the newspaper that my landlord and his mother had been arrested for the alleged murder of his father, but that's another story...

The point here is that we can change our underlying assumptions about a given situation , and it shouldn't necassarily take such a shock to force our hand.  We can choose to change our assumptions.

Smokers have a 1 in 3 chance of dying of a smoking-related illness, yet remain convinced that they won't.  People who eat fast food on a regular basis increase their chances of heart disease by up to 50%, but somehow remain persuaded that it will never happen to them.

If any of the above groups of people changed their basic assumptions about their lifestyle, they may well decide to change how they live. 

As individuals, we can choose to alter and modify our basic assumptions.  We can choose to view ourlifestyles differently, view our bodies differently, and enact certain changes that might benefit us.

But perhaps the greatest benefit of understanding paradigm shitfs and the impact of modifying our basic assumptions, is in how we view others.  Just when we are at our most judgemental, our most critical of someone else's behaviour or attitude (just as I was with my landlord), it might serve us well to question our basic assumptions.  So, the next time someone cuts you up on the road, ask yourself: "Is he being a maniac, or is something going on in his life that has affected his judgement and road courtesy today?" 

It's worth thinking about...