The Gift of Being Wrong

On resistance to change, and how to change it

Most mornings, the first thing I do is get up and write down whatever I dreamed last night. It’s a great tool for self-awareness and self-reflection.

Last night, I was in an open field full of people and wild animals—wolves, bears, creatures that could kill you. Everyone, including me, was running for their lives. This went on for some time. But at some point, something in me shifted. I realized I couldn't keep running forever.

So I stopped, faced a charging wolf head-on, and just as it was about to attack, I quickly reached out and grabbed it by the scruff of its neck. Immediately, it went limp—as harmless as picking up a kitten.

Thrilled with this discovery, I carried the docile wolf, still grabbing it by the scruff of its neck, over to show the others, still running for their lives.

Their reaction shocked me. Instead of relief or excitement, they were angry. Furious, even. I had broken their simulation—disrupted how they believed things worked. In my dream-logic, I couldn't understand why they'd prefer to keep running in terror when I'd found a way out.

When I woke up, I realized this dream captured something I've observed repeatedly in both my life and work: people often resist evidence that challenges their understanding of reality, even when that new understanding would improve their lives.