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Throughout the ages we as human beings have constantly evolved and adapted to our environment.

There was not much choice, it was either:
Adapt to your environment…or die.

The idea for this post actually came from when a few friends and I were playing a strategy game called Starcraft 2. This post is a bit geeky and nerdy but there are some important lessons you can take home from it.









For those of you who do not know what a strategy game is, let me explain.

A strategy game is a game where you play against an opponent (whether it be another person or the computer) and the goal is to destroy your opponent with your army and be the last man (or woman) standing.

That sounds easy enough right?

Of course it is not as easy as it sounds. That is the reason why literally millions if not tens of millions of people all around the world have been playing strategy games for years, especially the original Starcraft and now the follow-up Starcraft 2.

There are actually entire leagues of people who play this game as their job and do it for their living. They play 8 or more hours a day, to become the best players in the world.

Sounds silly…?

How does $100 000 sound? Or how does a few million dollars sound?

Yeah, that is what the top players in the world make by playing this game.

The reason why Starcraft 2 is so fun and competitive is because there are so many options and strategies. There are so many different types of units you can build. You need to constantly be one step ahead of your opponent to beat him.

You have to scout his base to know what he is up to and adjust your strategy according to what you see he is building.

Without getting too in-depth into the game let me give a quick example:

There are 4 different types of units that you can build:

• Units that attack ground only
• Units that attack air only
• Units that attack air and ground
• Units that are cloaked or invisible to normal units

If you don’t know that your opponent is building air units that attack ground units and you have no defense against it, you lose.

If you don’t have a counter for your opponents invisible units, you have to sit by helplessly and watch his invisible units kill your entire army and base.

Don’t worry too much if this all sounds Greek to you. The important thing is the message that you will get further on in the article.

Back to when my friends and I were playing

A strategy game is like chess, but on a much higher level. It really requires a lot of skill, thinking and multi-tasking ability.

I have a friend Al, who was pretty good with one strategy. The first few times that he used his strategy he won, and we thought he was really good at the game.

The thing is, he only knew that one strategy. Once we discovered this it was very easy to beat him for the rest. Al is a one-trick pony when it comes to Starcraft.

In one of my more philosophical moments, I started to relate Starcraft 2 to life and I think that some of the same principles apply.

Starcraft 2 Strategies to Apply To Life

If you are a one-trick pony, then it is very easy for life to beat you every time.

What I mean is that if you have one set view of life, one way of thinking and you are not open to new ideas or change, that you might find that life is very tough, unfair or difficult.

There is a saying, “The only constant is change”. This is so very true.

From the moment you are born, everything around you (including your own thoughts and body) is constantly changing.

Life is a flow. In order to go through life as easily and effortlessly as possible, you need to be like water and adapt to take the shape of the container that you get put into.

The easier and faster you can adapt your strategy to the curve balls and surprises that life sends your way, the less you will be caught off-guard and the less you will find yourself lost and not knowing what to do next or where to go next.

I’m not saying that you should be constantly worried about things that may or may not happen, but it is definitely good to be prepared for a reasonable number of things.

For example, do you know how you would act or do next if right now:

• A man snatched your phone out of your hands or punched you in the face randomly?




• A fire broke out in your house and burnt everything you owned. Are you insured?




• You got fired from your job?




• You are driving home at night and someone is following you, maybe even constantly flashing their lights at you?

Yes, these are all pretty bad scenarios. I hope that they will never happen to you, but I know that they can and do occur.

I’ve had it happen to me when I was hi-jacked at gun-point.

I don’t want to frighten you or turn you into some paranoid nut-case. All I’m saying is that it is better to be prepared and have a plan or a strategy to follow for certain situations. It is better to think about it and plan your strategy when all is calm and there is nothing to worry about than to try to think of the best plan of action in the moment of crisis.

You can never truly be prepared for everything, and there will be many times when you have to take it as it comes and play with the cards that you are dealt. As long as you have the mindset that you can and will adapt, and that you are open to change, I think that you are already a step ahead of most people.

Don’t be a one-trick pony!




P.S. If I’ve made you curious enough to try the game you can buy your copy online from amazon here: Starcraft II: Wings of Liberty. Be careful though because before you know it you will spend hours playing this game.

P.P.S. If you have the game or are planning to get it, one way to get really good is by learning the pro strategies from the Shokz Starcraft 2 Strategy Guide