3 Principles To Successfully Transition and Adapt in Any Environment

Wadduppdoeee!!! Good people, good Day!

As you progress in life and go after your dreams and goals, you'll be faced with unfamiliar settings that at times can be scary and intimidating. Being from a small one stoplight town, my exposure was limited growing up. We didn’t have the resources and opportunities that many in other parts of America had. You really had to be a dreamer to make it out and reach success. I’ve had to adjust and adapt since I left home for college. Things that were common knowledge to many were always new experiences for me. After going through my memory and talking with other young professionals, I came up with "3 Principles To Successfully Transition and Adapt in Any Environment". I'm confident that if applied, they'll help you just as much as they've helped me!

Principle # 1

Learn The Language

One of the first things to do when transitioning to a unfamiliar setting is to learn more about your new environment, the people, and the culture of the place. I remember being accepted into FAMU's Pharmacy program. I thought that I would be attending the main campus in Tallahassee. However, after reading my acceptance letter for a second time, i saw that I would be attending the Rural Diversity Healthcare Center in Crestview, FL. My class would be just the second class to participate in their distance learning program. So many of my peers came from different backgrounds and cultures. Up until this point in my life. all of my educational settings were made up of more than 95% African Americans. At the diversity Center, however, I was only 1 of 2 black males. It was definitely an adjustment but I made friends by being open minded and accepting of people who were different from me. I tried their different cuisines and learned about their culture. We studied together and had fun together. I'm still good friends with many people from the program.

Principle # 2 

Take Ownership

Along with taking ownership i'd like to add being self-aware. By taking ownership, I mean realizing you belong there just as much as everyone else and making decisions that improve the new environment. By being self-aware, I mean that your mood, behavior, and ownership in your new environment will influence and dictate how successful you will be.

Principle # 3

Limit Negativity

This one may be self explanatory but it's definitely important to guard yourself against negativity. In my live presentations I focus on 3 particular areas when communicating this point.

• Negative People
• Negative Environments
• Negative Habits

Being conscious of these things and avoiding them when possible will not only make it easier to get along in your environment, it will increase your overall success!