27/10/2025
What did Alexander mean by this, in essence:
1. The paradox of genuine change
Alexander observed that most people say they want to improve — whether it’s their posture, health, voice, performance, or state of mind — but they want to do so without fundamentally altering the way they act and react in the world. They hope for a better outcome while keeping the same habits, the same sense of “self,” and the same ways of reacting.
In other words, they want the results of change without the process of transformation.
2. Change feels like loss of self
Real change in the Alexander Technique involves letting go of deeply ingrained habits — not just physical ones, but mental and emotional ones tied to one’s identity.
When you stop doing what feels familiar (even if it’s harmful), it can feel wrong, strange, or not me.
So people unconsciously resist. They want to “be better,” but not to feel different.
3. Becoming different means surrendering control
Alexander’s work requires a willingness to inhibit automatic reactions — to pause and choose differently. That can feel like stepping into the unknown. Many people want improvement but still want to remain in control in the old, habitual way.
To be truly different means allowing yourself to not know — to experience yourself freshly.
4. In modern terms
It’s a psychological truth too: we can’t create new outcomes with the same consciousness that created the old ones. Change always involves a shift in awareness and self-perception — becoming a new way of being rather than just fixing an old pattern.
So when Alexander said, “People want change, but aren't prepared to be different,” he was pointing to the essential difficulty of being human: real transformation demands letting go of who you think you are, not just tweaking what you do.
