We, the Thermostats
I was recently reminded of the difference between thermostats and thermometers when it comes to temperature. Thermostats regulate temperature, whereas thermometers measure it.
I am convinced that it is easier to measure, and comment on, our culture than it is to actively seek to change it. Just this week, I was deeply chalenged by a man in a wheelchair who is carving out a future for himself at a tyre manufacturer. He is not waiting for a hand-out – he says he could not survive on it, anyhow – but has to overcome serious obstacles just to work.
I wonder what we can do to change the Welfare legislation, to get a disability grant within reach of minimum wage, for a start? I wonder…what else I can influence?
Do you usually switch on the TV news nightly, to be bombarded by an ambush of negativity? Do you think it has no effect on your morale, or attitude? I am shocked at how easily I can become cynical or even fatalistic about issues.
But I CAN be a thermostat, wherever I am in a position of influence. And so can you.