Member-only story
How the “Butterfly Effect” Can Propel You Towards The Life You Want
Our every thought, action, and choice matter, no matter how small it is
In December 1972, at the 139th annual meeting of the AAAS (American Association for the Advancement of Science), meteorologist Edward Lorenz posed a question:
“Does the flap of a butterfly’s wings in Brazil set off a tornado in Texas?”
Well, that’s a metaphor!
A butterfly’s wings could never trigger a tornado.
With this analogy, Edward Lorenz meant “an insignificant event like the butterfly flapping its wings, occurring at the appropriate time and place, may, in theory, trigger a chain reaction events that will result in the formation of a hurricane (significant change) somewhere else.”
This theory is called the butterfly effect.
He discovered the butterfly effect when he forecasted the weather. He found that even an error of a decimal point change in numbers affected drastically in his forecast.
It’s a principle we can all relate to. But it’s not just about chaos and unpredictability. It’s also about the power of small actions to create significant changes.