Don’t Be An Ostrich

“Don’t be an ostrich.”

When faced with a danger of any sort, it is said that ostriches instinctively bury their heads in the sand, hoping that the trouble will pass them by. But, of course, the truth is that Ostriches don’t bury their heads in the sand to avoid danger. Still, somehow, the Ostrich has become a metaphor to describe a typical human predicament. When we see an issue in front of us, or our fears face us, we choose to bury our heads in the sand and ignore the problem.

• You know you are growing heavier by the day, but you don’t want to face up to reality. Instead of checking your weight and taking action, you convince yourself that you are fit and healthy.

• You feel like your colleagues are not pulling their weight on the project, and you seem to be doing all the heavy lifting. So instead of reaching out and having an open conversation, you hold back, thinking the issue will solve itself.

• There are enough indications that your role may be made redundant. You see the signals clearly but choose to go into denial mode, thinking that you have an excellent track record and everything is ok.

When faced with a change, challenge, or impending danger, we sometimes tend to behave like the apocryphal Ostrich. We get stuck in inaction, unwilling to do what it takes because of uncertainty. Lacking the conviction or the courage to deal with the issue head-on, we behave like the Ostrich. 

Unfortunately, when you behave like the Ostrich, you blind yourself to the opportunities that come with resolving the issues- Better health, relationships, future. 

Imagine the Ostrich- What would really happen if coming face to face with a predator, it buries its head under the sand- It would become an easy meal to the predator. So the right choice for the Ostrich is always to keep its head up and run. 

The pain of the consequence of not dealing with a problem head-on is often exponentially more than the pain of confronting the problem at the outset.