Don't Fear The Nickels! Embrace The Change

January 22, 2021

Change can be so HARD!
(I mean, have you ever tried to bend a quarter? Badda Boom!)

Seriously though, there are only two choices we can make when faced with change in our work and personal lives. We can resist and potentially be swept away by the change or we can cooperate, adapt, and benefit from the change.

Make no mistake – your response is YOUR CHOICE and that choice is not often easy, typically scary, and can be riddled with anxiety.

Happy Friday, right? 🙄

We face two types of change: cyclical change and structural change, neither of which we can control.

Cyclical changes can be seasonal changes in the weather, increased travel during the summer (yes, please!), overspending at the holidays (I admit nothing!), etc…Cyclical because these happen in cycles and we accept them as normal ways of life.

Structural changes affect our lives in ways where there is no putting the genie back in the bottle – the invention of the Internet (insert your Al Gore joke here), the smart phone, Zoom, ending a marriage, losing a job, etc… These are the hard changes, the unbendable quarters, if you will.

These changes can sweep you away if you resist them. But they come regardless.

So let’s talk tips that might help us choose to cooperate, adapt, and benefit from change, in a quicker, less painful fashion.

Think about a time when you were experiencing a change but resisted it; a change you were going to have to deal with and you thought it was the worst thing in the world. (I’ve got mine!) What happened once you finally surrendered to the change? Did your life improve (eventually)? Maybe enough time has passed now and you can even say to yourself, “Hmm, I’m actually glad that happened. Look what’s come from it!”

Training yourself to recall that you’ve been through some heavy stuff in the past, and you’ve largely made it through better off than before, trains your brain to approach new changes with anticipation rather than fear, excitement rather than anxiety.

I sense you might not be buying what I’m selling. Don’t take my word for it. Ask yourself the following questions and take your own word for it.

💬 What’s changing in my life that I’m currently resisting?
💬 Why am I resisting this change?
💬 What am I afraid of with this change?
💬 What am I afraid might happen to me?
💬 What’s the payoff for me keeping things the way they are? What’s the cost?
💬 What benefits might there be in this change?
💬 What would I have to do to cooperate with this change?
💬 Was what I HAD really what I WANTED or was I just used to it?

(BOOM! LET THAT ONE LAND ON A FEW OF YOU.)

Change is HARD but the chance to experience something better is BIG.
Don’t fear the nickels, dimes and quarters. Take a chance.