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Embracing Change
Change Is Coming
There is no stopping change. Change is inevitable. It's as much a fact of life as the rising and the setting of the sun. It is hard to find something that doesn't undergo change. Seasons change. Fashions change. Feelings change. Laws change. Expectations change. Our bodies change.
The only constant is change. Change is going to happen. Sometimes we initiate the change. Sometimes change is thrust upon us. Sometimes the change comes with a warning. Sometimes it comes unexpectedly.
Change Is Necessary
There is no growth without change. Change is necessary for plants to grow, for people to grow, for relationships to grow, for our minds to grow, and so much more. Without change the world becomes stagnant and shortly thereafter is met with decay.
Change is necessary for progress. We can argue later about whether all change is good or not. Advances in technology, medicine, food safety, and more are the results of changes that went against the status quo. We reap great benefits today from those who chose to change the way things were done.
Why Change Is Good
Okay.
We know that change is coming.
We know that change is necessary.
Knowing these things about change doesn't mean it's going to be easy to deal with. Change can often be hard and uncomfortable. It requires adjustments in mindset and performance. Regardless of whether we perceive the change as good or bad, it can still catch us off guard and leave us with feelings of stress and anxiety.
Change can significantly impact our daily routine. It can disrupt our way of thinking and our usual way of doing things. It can invade our comfort zone and derail our best-laid plans for a worry-free existence.
The inability to process change correctly can affect our well-being which may manifest itself in a variety of unhealthy ways including:
- Angry outbursts
- Sleepless nights
- Headaches
- Withdrawal from friends and loved ones
- Mood swings including depression and sadness
- Inability to focus
- Body aches and pains
- Not eating enough or eating too much
- Ulcers and other stomach issues
That doesn't mean change in and of itself is bad. It can also open doors to a brighter future and a destination that we never thought possible.
I want to share some ways to cope with change positively and productively. Having tools to help you navigate change will allow you to not avoid the process but gravitate toward the possibilities change can uncover.
6 Keys To Embracing Change
1. Know It's Coming
Have the mindset that you know change happens and that you will be ready for it. Prepare mentally by enlisting tools such as the ones listed here. Keep expanding your current skillset and knowledge for the challenges ahead.
Read. Learn about others that have faced change and succeeded. Learn more about why change is essential and even welcomed by successful people. Gain encouragement that everyday people face change and conquer it. If they can, so can you.
Accept the change and realize that resisting or avoiding it will only add to the difficulty of processing change and add additional roadblocks to fully completing the required change.
2. Lean Into Change
Get started. Take action. Movement of any kind eliminates the paralyzing effects of procrastination.
Take a chance. You gain nothing if you risk nothing. Life is way too short to be stuck in the same place and the same mindset. Many lives fall short of their potential because they hid in the other room when opportunity knocked.
Take a positive approach and look at the change as an adventure. A way to realize dreams and reach destinations that you never thought possible. Embracing change is all about the approach. Being willing to step out and learn something new and seeing the advantages in doing so will strengthen your resolve and deliver more positive outcomes.
"Change will not come if we wait for some other person or some other time. We are the ones we've been waiting for. We are the change that we seek."
-Barack Obama
It will be easier to stay the course if you feel it's going to be worth it in the end. We are never inclined to do something just for the sake of doing it. We need to see the benefit to us or the value to our family or organization.
Make sure that the result of the change will align with your belief system as well. If you can match your core values or faith to the end objective, you will avoid distractions and silence naysayers along the way.
Align your core values, faith, and skills with needed change and the path will become clearer and doubts will be diminished. Knowing what's on the other side of the mountain you are about to climb will make the effort worthwhile.
4. Find Support
Enlist others in your journey. Find motivation in the success stories of others or solutions gained from a new perspective. Involving others also gives you accountability and makes it much harder to simply jump ship when the waves interrupt smooth sailing.
Seek a trusted advisor or mentor. Change is rarely easy. It can even seem downright daunting at times, but you don't have to go it alone.
Road trips are more fun when shared, notwithstanding the "Are we there yet?" cries from the back seat, and so is the path to change. You'll have someone to share the adventure with and make you stop to see or enjoy something you might have missed going solo.
"Change is the law of life. And those who look only to the past or present are certain to miss the future."
-John F. Kennedy
5. Stay The Course
Don't quit. Baby steps lead to small steps lead to BIG results. You can anticipate stumbling from time to time. There may be lapses or even relapses along the way. The overriding factor to your success is to not let these speed bumps detour you.
Outline your path to change. Have performance markers in place that will allow you to celebrate some wins along the way. They will also give you a point of reference to return to in case you get bumped off the road now and then.
Rest areas are okay on your trip. Just don't take time to pitch a tent. Recharge and regroup. Then get back on the road.
Recognize that each obstacle you claim victory over will give you more confidence for the next.
Stay positive and have faith in the outcome.
6. Learn The Lesson
"To improve is to change; to be perfect is to change often."
-Winston Churchill
Make a change
Enacting change can release your inner beast. Take note of your success and the skills you learned. Your new confidence is like an inflated balloon. It will never return to its former size.
Change can be a great educator. Don't let the lessons be wasted. Become a master of change. The more you conquer change, the more you welcome the next battle.
Now you can ask "What's the next challenge?", rather than sitting back and letting life dictate your growth. You begin to think bigger and with more assuredness.
When change is unable to reduce you to submission, you become smarter as a result. Your improved perspective and understanding of life will even lead some to call you WISE.
Now that's a happy conclusion indeed.
DISCLOSURE: This post may contain affiliate links, meaning I get a small commission if you decide to make a purchase through my links.
As an Amazon affiliate, I earn from qualifying purchases at no cost to you.
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