The children were yelling back and forth, throwing things, even grabbing people’s papers. The man sat down next to me and closed his eyes, apparently oblivious to the situation. The children were so loud and rambunctious that instantly the whole climate changed. Then suddenly, a man and his children entered the subway car. People were sitting quietly – some reading newspapers, some lost in thought, some resting with their eyes closed. “I remember a mini-paradigm shift I experienced one Sunday morning on a subway in New York. Paradigms are defined as: "frameworks containing basic assumptions, ways of thinking and reflections." Although it's perfectly safe to press on the brakes when our paradigms tell us "red means stop", it's not so safe to let our paradigms to judge people or make important decisions in life. Below is an excerpt from the book “ The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People” by Stephen Covey, where the author shares his experience of a mini-paradigm shift. Pay attention to the shift in his perception and the following changes in his thoughts, emotions and behaviours. Just like learning to drive on the other side of the road, it requires a lot will power and focus to shift the paradigms we have in our minds. Another problem is that paradigms are hard to break. First of all, if you ignored the new set of driving rules that applies to you, you would be driving in the wrong side of the lane, putting yourself in grave danger. In New Zealand, you have to drive on the other side of road. After living and driving in the U.S for the past 30 years, you decide to move to New Zealand. You were able to come to a quick decision and hit the breaks. In the case of you noticing the red traffic lights as 'stop', your ingrained paradigms have worked in your favour. Paradigms can also be dangerous because of their habit-like properties and may even blind us from the truth. Let's go back to the example of you driving a car. Paradigms are helpful as it allows us to sort and classify information without thinking. What do you see? A face of a woman? Some people see a man playing the saxophone.
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