The Almond and the Spacecraft: 5 Powerful Truths for adapting to innovation

Personal Introduction: The Unsettling Feeling of New Beginnings

Stepping into a new job, a new city, or a new role often comes with a disquieting feeling. The initial excitement gives way to a subtle, creeping question: "Do I belong here?" Even with a new contract in hand, we can feel like imposters in our own lives, doubting the very capabilities that got us there. This uncertainty is a common reaction to the friction of change.

While change is the only constant, our inner core doesn't have to be swept away with it. This newsletter edition offers five powerful ideas drawn from discussions on my book Conquer Your Mountains, designed to guide you on a journey of renewal. We'll start by understanding the external illusions that trigger self-doubt, then explore the internal forces we must overcome. From there, we'll define the ideal state of being in a new environment, normalize the emotional struggle of transition, and conclude with the ultimate tool we have for navigating it all...

1. Your New "Uniform" Isn't Your New Identity

Imagine you start a new job. Maybe you trade a green uniform you wore for twenty years for a red one. It’s easy to look at this external shift and feel like a fundamentally different person. This simple mental block, confusing the outer shell with the inner core, is a primary source of the imposter syndrome that plagues us during transitions. We mistakenly believe that because the external has changed, the internal must have changed, too.

This thinking misses a critical point: You were hired for the person you are, not for the uniform you would wear. An organization chooses you for your core, which is far more than just your skillset. It is your true essence: Who you are, who you belong to, who you follow, and what your purpose is.

The key is to build this strong core so that a change in your environment doesn't trigger a crisis of identity.

So it's a trick of the mind that because the external has changed, our mind starts to ask whether the internal has changed. And that comes back to the strong core.

2. The Spacecraft: Personal Change Is Like Escaping Gravity

Old habits exert a powerful force, much like gravity. When we try to make a significant change, we are constantly being pulled back to what’s comfortable and known. This is why simply "trying harder" often isn't enough.

Just as a spacecraft needs to achieve "exit speed" to break free from Earth's atmosphere, meaningful personal change requires a powerful and sustained push to overcome the pull of the past.

This analogy reframes the struggle. It’s not a personal failing - it’s a battle against a natural force. To generate that exit speed, you need a powerful fuel source, and that fuel is intrinsic motivation that is rooted in your values. Change imposed externally is unlikely to last. The desire to become that new version of yourself must come from within, from the strong, value-driven core we just discussed. When you know what you value - a healthy mind, a purposeful career - you generate the authentic energy needed to achieve liftoff.

You always have these forces and it's like gravity that always pulling you backwards. And gravity is a strong force...

You need to work out what your exit speed is to be that new you.

3. In a New World, Be the Almond, Not the Sugar

How do you integrate into a new environment without losing your core self? A food analogy provides a powerful guide. When you put sugar in a cake batter, it dissolves completely. It loses its original form, becoming indistinguishable from the whole. An almond, however, is different. The goal is to integrate change without disintegrating your core.

When you bake a cake with an almond in it, the nut is still there when you take a bite. It has a strong consistency and adds its unique flavor and texture to the recipe, but it hasn't dissolved.

In personal and professional transitions, the aim isn't to be washed away by a new culture, but to contribute your unique strengths while remaining whole. This almond-like consistency ensures you can withstand the high temperatures that come with innovation.

4. It's Normal to Feel Like an "Orphan" in New Situations

Being thrust into a new environment is never easy. For me it was moving to Cape Town and realizing "I don't have friends here, I don't have the usual spots that I go to for fun and joy" and this created a profound sense of disconnection. This has been described as feeling "orphaned," as if you've been pulled away from your roots with nothing to hold onto.

Crucially, this feeling is not a sign of failure but a normal part of growth. It is the strength of the almond, that strong, value-driven core, that allows you to embrace this discomfort without disintegrating.

The antidote is twofold: first, find "bridges from the past to the future," like hobbies that provide a sense of constancy. Second, resist the urge to constantly compare the new with the old and be open to creating something entirely new, looking for the joy that comes from forging new connections.

And that's the feeling of being orphaned. And it's important in those situations to embrace the discomfort of being pulled away from your roots and look for the joy that comes with creating new connections.

5. True Wisdom Is Knowing When to Trust Yourself Over the Facts

In our modern world, it’s easy to confuse knowledge with wisdom. Knowledge is data and expert opinion. Wisdom, however, is the ethical and context-sensitive application of that knowledge. A 2006 research article identified five key characteristics of wisdom: creativity, curiosity, judgment/open-mindedness, a love of learning, and the ability to take on a broader perspective.

Consider my story as a runner who suffered a second degree MCL injury a couple of months before a half marathon. My doctor provided the knowledge: the facts suggested I most likely wouldn't be ready and running would be a risk. The runner in me then had to step into the realm of wisdom. I weighed the facts against my personal context: How could I accelerate my healing? What would be the emotional impact of not running? My final decision was on the fuzzy border of wisdom, courage and folly.

Wisdom is our ultimate tool for navigating change. In a world where we are bombarded by information from artificial intelligence, social media, and culture, wisdom is our personal filter.

Wisdom is the judgment we use to decide which advice to follow and which to discard, ensuring our choices align with our authentic goals. As Winston Churchill famously said, "You will never reach your destination if you stop and throw stones at every dog that barks."

Conclusion: Your Anchor in the Storm of Change

Successfully navigating change is not an act of reinvention, but a journey of reaffirmation. It’s a process of looking past external illusions, using your core values to generate escape velocity from old trappings, and having the strength to endure temporary discomfort, all guided by the wisdom to know your own path. It's about anchoring so deeply into who you already are that the shifting winds of a new environment cannot pull you off course.

The next time you face a new beginning, ask yourself: Will you dissolve like sugar, or will you be the almond in the cake?