Bon Journal

Uprooting questions

Caught in the middle of uprooting, I decided to target the April issue of Le Bon Journal ezine on the subject.

Human beings by nature resist change. There is comfort in the familiar, for a good reason. Change means letting go of past and present which are certain and familiar and embracing the future which is uncertain and unfamiliar. Change increases transaction costs, that of setting up, packing, unpacking, familiarising, etc.

Change creates hassle.

Uprooting involves a lot of change. I am interested in the stories about change and uprooting.

Somebody said that the most stressful things in life are - the loss of a close friend or relative, the loss of a job, and moving house.

I'm curious if frequent uprooting makes a person more resilient or more resistant to change.

1. How many times have you uprooted?
   By uprooting, I mean moving to a different country, different job, etc -
   
2. What were the reasons for each? What were the circumstances? Were they voluntary?
3. How much time did you have to prepare? Did you move yourself or had the help - of your company etc?
4. In the new location, how long did it take before you felt normal and comfortable? What did you do to try to integrate with the local society/community? Could you have done anything differently?
5. What were some of the interesting, embarrassing, funny stories of settling in your new location - e.g. cultural misunderstandings etc.
6. What would you suggest (advice) to people who have to uproot - given your own experience?
7. Anything else you'd like to add? Did uprooting make you a stronger person?

6 March 2004 Saturday

Le Bon Journal ezine

analyticalQ travel stories