Crisis ignored, crisis ensured

If you place a frog in cold water and gradually heat it, the frog won't react; it just adjusts, thinking "I can handle this". But as the temperature keeps rising, it reaches a point where the frog realises it must escape. Sadly, by then, it's too weak to jump. It didn't die from the heat; it died from not acting in time. That's the "Boiling Frog Syndrome".

In life, we often behave like that frog, tolerating injustice, disrespect, or pain, hoping things will improve. Problems that could have been stopped early grow beyond control. By the time we are ready to react, we are too exhausted, too broken or too old. The lesson? Don't wait until you have no strength left. Set your boundaries, speak up, and protect your self-respect before you end up like the frog that wanted to survive but could not.

The "Boiling Frog Syndrome" is a metaphor, not a proven science. But it reflects human behaviour—we often adapt to worsening situations instead of reacting. In Bangladesh, this is seen in how people tolerate corruption, injustice, workplace exploitation, or poor governance, thinking "it's still manageable". Over time, these problems escalate, and when people finally want to act, they are too drained or powerless or victims of the situation, just like the frog.

Psychological inertia is the tendency to stick to the status quo, even when change would be beneficial, mirroring the "Boiling Frog Syndrome", where people ignore the gradual decline until it's too late. Studies show that this inertia causes individuals to resist change, even when faced with new, opposing facts. A related concept, emotional inertia, refers to staying stuck in the same emotional state. Research links higher emotional inertia to issues like depression and low self-esteem, as individuals struggle to adapt emotionally to shifting situations, worsening their mental well-being over time.

Several studies have explored psychological and emotional inertia—the human tendency to resist change even when beneficial. A study in Psychological Medicine found that individuals with high emotional inertia are more prone to depression and low self-esteem. Another study in Frontiers in Psychology linked brain activity to emotional adaptability, showing a neurological basis for inertia. In Bangladesh, similar patterns are seen in workplace stagnation, poor public health habits, and environmental complacency, highlighting the need for timely action.

In our corporate and political culture, we rarely flinch when injustice happens, as long as it's happening to someone else. A colleague gets disrespected, a friend is sidelined, a relative is mistreated, and we watch silently, hoping the heat won't reach us. But here's the catch: if the water's warming for them, it's only a matter of time before it boils for you, too. This bystander syndrome, masked as "not my problem", is just another form of selfishness. Unlike Bollywood, there's no heroic music cue for someone to step in. If we wait to act only when we are the victim, we will all be cooked together - one silent frog at a time.

To escape the boiling frog fate, we must stop pretending "it's not that bad yet". In Bangladesh, endurance is often mistaken for wisdom. But there's nothing wise about waiting until it's too late to act. Speak up early, demand accountability, track the decline with data, and strengthen your emotional spine. Institutions won't fix themselves, nor will your boss's toxic behaviour. Act while you still have the energy, because you might already be dinner by the time you realise you're boiling.

Timely decisions are not just wise—they're vital. For corporates, acting early means staying competitive, attracting talent, and leading change. In Bangladesh, we don't jump out, form a committee, draft a five-year action plan, and host a workshop on "frog resilience". By the time real action kicks in, we are fully boiled, the budget's gone, and everyone's been promoted. Even frogs here need policy reform to survive.

The author is the president of the Institute of Cost and Management Accountants of Bangladesh and founder of BuildCon Consultancies Ltd.