Navigating Change
Since we talked about being uncomfortable in last week's post, I figured I had a great segway into talking about change. Some of us may love change, but if you're anything like me, change can be a little difficult. Now, to be clear, I don't hate all change. In fact, I don't hate change at all. I simply recognize the need to adjust to change - and I'm not always ready and/or willing to adjust on demand. There are some changes that I love, like changing furniture, changing nail color or changing my hairstyle. If you notice, these are all changes that I have a say in (yes, we are self-aware around here). However, we're going to talk about handling change that we don't have a say in.
Some of the most recognized changes in life consist of starting a family, losing family, moving to a new state, buying a home, and getting married. There are a ton of other monumental changes that I’m sure I’ve left out. We all measure change differently, so there could be other things in life that feel like a big change to you that may not feel so big to someone else. With that in mind, I can confidently say that we are all destined to face a large change in our lives at least once. While this is true, we also must agree that large changes don't have to stunt our growth and/or progress. Aside from a grieving period and time to process, we must keep moving forward.
I dealt with, what I believed to be, a pretty large life change in 2022. For a few months I found myself processing and feeling uncomfortable and to some degree, grieving. Thankfully, I didn't lose a family member, however the way that I lived my day to day life changed in a big way. I can humbly admit that I was paralyzed for a while. I was unsure of what to do. I couldn't determine what I could control versus what I couldn't and I was concerned about how long this change would last. I became paralyzed because I didn't want to adjust. In fact, I challenged and fought not to adjust. There came a point where I realized that this change had the potential to be positive. I also accepted that I no longer had as much control as I once did (the topic of control will have to have its own post). Once I accepted these new truths, I was then able to better navigate and adjust to what was at hand. Over time I learned just how many benefits came with that big life change and while it still requires effort and compromise, I'm very happy that I chose to adjust instead of self sabotaging (although at moments I wanted to).
We all approach life differently. What works for you may not work for me and vice versa. I suggest that we all agree to approach one thing similarly - let's all decide that major life changes only require adjustment. Change is hard and in some cases can be miserable and gut-wrenching, but it still doesn't have to be paralyzing. There is always another side to trial in life. We just have to see ourselves to it. Right here, and right now - commit to forever seeing yourself to the other side of any obstacle you may face. I agree to do the same.
