We are all set in our ways. We know how we like things and when they are different we complain. Life is not about getting things your way. It’s about experiencing things in new ways.
Here’s a good example: One of my co-workers who I go to lunch with each day is a Mexican Food snob. He won’t try new mexican food places if they don’t meet his requirements for authenticity. (Nevermind the fact that no mexican food in Texas is authentic. It’s all Tex-Mex.) He is set in his ways about how his food should be and won’t even consider trying restaurants that might be, in his opinion, lesser.
I find myself in similar situations quite often. I have to remind myself that it’s good to try new things or even old things in new ways. I might enjoy it just as much or even more. You have to appreciate things as they are and not try to make them your way. I think I’m doing a pretty good job of it. While other people order things specially prepared I almost always go with the as-is plate. I want to taste it like the chef intended. I don’t even add salt.
Restaurants are good examples but this lesson can also be applied to other life situations. Remember it next time you are being picky about something. There’s a really good chance that somebody put a lot of time and research into making it the way it is. It might just be perfect already.