Do you like change? I don't!
A lot of people say that the only things in life that are certain are death and taxes. I want to add one more item to the list - CHANGE!
Change (Noun): the act of making or becoming something different
I have been facing a lot of change in my life recently. Aspects of my life that I was comfortable with are changing (becoming something different) and as a result, cause me discomfort. Change is not inherently bad, but sometimes I struggle with external change because of how it causes me to change internally.
As I face these changes, I can respond in a variety of ways.
Deny It
This seems like the worst response because I have already admitted that change is a normal part of life. But time and time again, I watch people try to deny the change that is taking place.
Many of us are change adverse. Change makes us feel like we are not in control of our lives. It makes us feel uneasy and that our foundation is unstable. But denying change does not make it less real. You can deny it. You can try to push it away or push it aside, but change is coming so I recommend that you make an attempt to accept it.
Accept It
Before we can accept the change that is taking place in our lives, we have to acknowledge it. My advice is to take a step back, take a deep breath, and relax. Time and time again, I am so overwhelmed by the change that is occurring in my life that I cannot objectively look at what is happening. Have you ever felt that way?
- Has change ever hurt you so deeply that you forgot to see if you could mitigate the hurt?
- Have you experienced grief (change that occurs when you experience loss) and forgot that you need to live life well in the moment?
- Have your dreams and goals been shattered, and as a result, you forgot how to make new dreams and goals?
Take a moment and think about what is happening in your life, and then go one step more and accept your new reality. Your current reality is not a barrier to a better future reality, instead it is your new starting point. You have to accept the change you are experiencing, no matter what it is.
Harness It
And if we go one more step, we will start to harness the change we are experiencing in order to create a better future.
No one wants to ...
- lose a loved one
- experience unemployment
- miss out on a wonderful opportunity
- go through depression
But these are realities in life. How will you harness the change you are experiencing today to create the opportunity for a better future?
Allow change to be ...
- a new start
- a motivator
- an adventure
- an opportunity to increase your knowledge and experience
Harness the external changes you are facing today, and make changes to who you are both today and in the future.
Final Thoughts
Change is hard! I personally do not enjoy change, but I am trying to live life better when I experience it.
I want to hear from you.
- Do you like change?
- What is the biggest change you have faced recently?
- What advice would you give to someone who is experiencing change?
I look forward to your comment.
@SumatraNate
Image Source: https://pixabay.com/en/change-new-beginning-risk-road-3256330/
I’m almost 60 years old and one cool thing about reaching this age is I have weathered extreme changes in my life and I have come to accept change as a friend and an opportunity to bust up old habits 🌀😈
I really appreciate your perspective on change. We all have old habits that need to be broken. Change is definitely an opportunity in those cases.
I have a hard time imagining you as an almost 60 year old (and that is meant as a compliment).
I feel older and younger depending on the day...lololol
I don't know why we are afraid of change since we have been changing since the egg and sperm decided to do the dance of life!
But in my head I am around 16 years old, still full of hope and optimism....you are so kind <3
accept the change and make it as friend is a must but that is the most difficult thing @reddust. nice to see you again here. but any way we need to learn and make peace with our past to accept it and hopefully we could make better future. regards
I have you beaten! I'm 70. LOL!
I do, in general, especially if it leads to something better. Not constant change, but a variety of my daily life. And a bigger change happening every 2–3 years.
My job is getting terminated in the end of May. So I am currently planning to move from my current city to either study at a different place in Sweden or to move to another country and start a freelancing career as a Blockchain developer (coding Etherium and EOS smart contracts).
Embrace it, don’t fight it. Try to see the silver lining. Remember: you are the master of your destiny, not a victim of circumstances.
You bring up a great point. There is a difference between occasional change and constant change. Variety is good, but large changes (in my opinion) are better when spread out.
I wish you the best as you face this new adventure. I know how hard it is to move and change jobs. I have done so recently.
Great advice for someone facing change. I hope to live this out.
I'm a bit of a risk-taker, and I think that's why I enjoy certain types of change, and even encourage it sometimes. For example, when I was made redundant from my job 8 years ago I was overjoyed, because I'd been bullied in an attempt to force me to do the job for less pay, and the situation had become unbearable. I'd been planning a new business for over a year, and just needed the redundancy offer. The business only lasted five years, and it's been a tough road, but I've gained much better work/life balance, and more long-term (but not short-term) financial security.
Sudden change can be terrible, like a hillwalking accident I had last year, where I lost five teeth. That's probably the biggest change I've faced recently. But change can also be like a kick in the butt to shift you into a more wholesome way of life.
I suppose the advice I'd give is to be calm and try to laugh your way through the change. When I was being bullied at work, I started going to Buddhist meditation group at lunchtime as it made me feel calm and put everything into perspective.
Different people feel differently about change. Some love it and some hate it. I am glad that you looked at your situation positively. When I look back after experiecncing change I can almost always see the benefit. It is when I am in the moment that I struggle the most. Thanks for adding to the conversation.
That's a very good point. Change can be awful when you're in the middle of it, but when you look back with a calm head you see what the learnings were.
Thanks for your motivating words, I am also going through a lot of changes now, sometimes I wonder what the end result will be. but I'm still hopeful and letting the change move me towards a greater goat.
I don't really like changes when it comes to challenges and difficulty but I know it will make a better person in the end.
My biggest change was when I lost my dad and had to be my own man and finance myself.
My advice to anyone going through changes out there is to make sure that your head is always in a positive space.
Part of the fun is waiting to see what the end result will be. I am waiting to see my end result as well in some parts of my life. I am sorry to hear about your loss. Great advice! We need to keep a positive attitude.
In my lifetime I have seen television become mainstream, the invention of jet airliners, nuclear submarines, the first handheld calculators, portable home phones, digital cameras, the first home computers, barcodes, marker pens, the internet and mobile phones etc.etc.
Change is inevitable. I have had lots of changes in my life - some which seemed like the worst that could happen. But then I am constantly reminded from Romans 8:28 that:
So, change is part of God's greater plan. He knows what He is doing with His creation. :-)
I appreciate your God-focused mindset on change. As a follower of Jesus, I believe that Romans 8:28 is true. I can not always see the good in the moment, but I do believe that God has a good purpose for all things.
Thank for adding to the conversation and for the encouraging words!
You are welcome. It’s always encouraging to know that He sees the big picture in our changes, whereas we just see the here and now. 😊
Hi, it has been 2 days, I just recover from my fever. And again I just wanna enjoy the time reading from you @sumatranate. it is interesting topic actually. the only thing that never change is the "change" itself..:D
No and yes. change can't be stopped, so just need to adjust ourselves, change for better, yes I like it, change to the worst?, nope I dont like it. when our life is forced to change, and we are running out into un-comfort zone we just need to accept it as a new challenge.
The coffee price is getting higher with lower quality, and more difficult to sell it at the moment. I try to find a solution to sell out our stock pile.
The only advice I could possibly give at the moment is face it and accept it as a part of new journey of life. what we think that way at least we are free to take another step and carry on our life as it suppose to be
Regards
I am glad to hear that you are feeling better. I agree that unexpected change that feels forced on us is not very fun. I hope you are able to find a solution to the changing price of coffee. I know that low prices of coffee beans are difficult for you. Keep pressing forward!
Great posts and excellent topic for a post! I too have been undergoing change lately and sometimes my initial reaction is anxiety or fear just because it’s something different. Sometimes I can settle into it and get used to the idea and creatively sculpt it in my mind, then I can work with it (as you say harness it). Sometimes it’s inevitable and sometimes we don’t like it! But change it is a’coming! Blessings
Thanks for your comment and kind words. You bring up a good point about the difference between initial reaction and the reaction after having some time to process what is happening. A lot of times this "change events" are a process and we must go through the steps to get to the end result.
Yes! Completely see this too. It needs time to work on us like the pearl in the oyster...
I used to resist change, but some is best to embrace, almost hitting 60 I have seen many changes in Society. technology and myself and once you realize a change is needed embracing it is important, but its still not easy
You are right. Change is not easy, but it seems that life experience and personal growth help us embrace change better (even when we don't like it). Thanks for sharing. What is one of the biggest changes you have seen in society and technology of the last 60 years?
To list just one is hard but if I had to I guess I would use the broad umbrella of communications
Telephone calls Even globally are so many ch more affordable these days, add the internet and messaging has made almost everyone online almost constantly and to me this has reduced real personal interactions as well
So pluses and minuses
Commuincation has change significanlty in the last 10 years, let alone the last 60. Thanks for sharing that insight!
And I forgot to mention I started as a telecom tech so I really noticed the changes
The change of an absolute thing that happens to us, whether it is ready or not is a reality of life that we must accept, both in our age, attitude, career and character that are influenced naturally, environmentally and time to deal with those changes in our lives preparing mentally and self-adjustment to changes in both positive and negative changes.
You are correct. A lot of how we deal with change is about our attitude and being prepared. But sometimes changes come that we are not prepared for. Those are some of the most challenging moments in life.
saya telah mengalami sebuah perubahan yang sangat buruk, waktu itu saya sangat terpukul dengan perubahan, tapi saat saya berusaha menerima dengan ikhlas perubahan itu, saya merelakan kehilangan status pertama saya, saya baru bisa menikmati kondisi saya berada dalam perubahan, perubahan memang sering menyakitkan
Terpukul dulu. Kemudian berusaha supaya bisa menikmati.
Memang itu sering terjadi. Trims atas komennya.
Benar sekali.bukan menikmati dari pertama.tapi bisa dikatakan berusaha menikmati
Benar sekali.bukan menikmati dari pertama.tapi bisa dikatakan berusaha menikmati