For success in school and work the ability to adapt or adjust to a changing condition or circumstance is more important than having excellent knowledge of a job or a field to study

There has been a lot of debate recently about whether the ability to adapt is more important than having excellent knowledge of a job. Personally, I tend to agree that for success in school and work, the ability to adapt or adjust to a changing condition or circumstance is more important than having excellent knowledge of a job or a field to study since communication skills, good social network and the ability to cooperate are essential to success in school and work.

First of all, communication skill plays an important role in success, and the ability to adjust to a changing condition can bring about outstanding communication skills. For example, when students are able to adjust to the various teaching styles of different teachers at school, they can fully express their opinions in class. What’s more, by exchanging thoughts with other classmates, students can benefit most from class, and even stand out among their peers. On the other hand, if students choose to only indulge in professional knowledge, they might not often have the chance to participate in heated discussions. In addition, they might find it hard to express their viewpoints, even if they have really good ideas. As a result, they would totally blend in with the wallpaper in class.

Secondly, people need good social network to succeed in school and work, and the ability to adapt can provide people with good networking. For instance, when people can adapt themselves to different teams and people from different background, they can get along well with almost everybody. Moreover, by changing themselves a bit in different circumstances, they are regarded as easy-going and comfortable to work with. Therefore, these people would know a lot of people and enjoy an extremely strong network. On the contrary, a person who has a lot of professional knowledge but who might not be able to adapt to different ideas that much, might seem stiff and awkward to others. Eventually, they might suffer from loneliness in the long run. Apparently, it is important for people to possess the ability to adapt because it can help develop good social networking.

Finally, it is significant for people to cooperate well with other people, and the ability to adjust to a changing condition can cultivate good team-working skills. Take myself as an example. When I worked with a team of Taiwanese colleagues, I often talked about examples about food, and we made a great team together. Yet, when I worked with people from the US, I discussed my business ideas over a few drinks, and the American people explicitly stated that it was a pleasure to work with me. In the end, by adapting to different conditions, I successfully persuaded both the Taiwanese team and the Americans to work together on a business project. Indeed, the ability to adapt has much more relevance than excellent knowledge when it comes to good cooperation skills.

In conclusion, I would say that to succeed in both school and work, the ability to adjust to changing conditions is much more crucial than possessing excellent knowledge since people place emphasis on communication skills, social network and the ability to cooperate.