Rather die than change?

All the evidence, both scientific or by observation, suggests that people would rather die than change. They keep smoking, use cell-phones while driving, eat too much, drink alcohol to excess. Yet we seem to not have learned this lesson. I see in a networking group which I chair, that members, who pay annual dues, do not update their profiles on the website even though they know that it enables them to be found more easily for job or consulting opportunities.

People resist change, perhaps because their need for security means that they cannot leave the old habits behind. Even when it is clear to any intelligent person that change is inevitable, they will not learn new skills, move to a new place, or even make new friends. Fortune 500 companies last, on average, about half the average career length of an individual, yet few prepare for that. Many senior positions are held for less than two years, yet once someone gets a new job, they almost always relax and act as though they will have the job for life.