In a sea of change, sailing with the tide will carry you in a positive new direction.
Life is full of change. Whether you ask for it or not, you can choose to be a resistor or an embracer of change.
Now, I know that many of you with traditional beliefs may find the idea of changes in morality to be concerning. I share that sentiment in many ways.
The kinds of changes I’m talking about are more practical and circumstantial. There is certainly a time and place for standing against the tides of societal drift, but even then, there may be wisdom in learning to accept what you cannot control and redirect your efforts in the more malleable areas.
Why have I chosen to be an embracer of change?
It comes down to optimism versus pessimism. Pessimistic people often long for the way things used to be. They primarily offer nostalgia, which may have resulted from a different context. They don’t typically have constructive ideas for how to build something new—only the desire to keep things the same.
Optimists, on the other hand, build the future and shape it as they’d like it to be. They acknowledge change as an opportunity to make things better and are willing to endure the discomfort of transition for the sake of having a voice at the table.
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7 Steps to Embrace Change
1. Keep an Open Mind
The first step toward accepting change is to hold back your initial skepticism. I try to do this by imagining the good that could come from change. No system or plan is perfect, so you may find something you like even better.
2. Focus on the Positives of the New Situation
In a similar sense, choose to focus your attention on the aspects of a change that you appreciate. When my old company was combined with a new company, I knew that certain colleagues I enjoyed would be moving on, but instead of dwelling on that, I focused on the fact that I would be able to work from home and have more time with my family.
3. Learn to Accept What You Can’t Control
There’s a time and place to push back against changes coming your way. But I’m emphasizing embracing change that is happening whether you like it or not. In that sense, I’ve found more inner peace from intentionally letting go of anything I can’t control. I just don’t give those things any space in my mind.
4. Give Yourself and Others Time to Adjust
When you start something new, it often feels a little difficult and strange. That feeling won’t last forever. Eventually, you’ll get used to new things and become better at them, you may even come to enjoy them. That’s why giving yourself time before coming to a final judgment is best.
5. Leverage Change for Your Ends
Now that change has come your way, what will you do? Maybe you’ve developed a food intolerance that makes your current eating pattern unworkable. Instead of sulking and shifting your diet to mere compliance, consider taking the opportunity to reinvent your diet altogether to one that is healthier and more enjoyable.
6. Quickly Readjust Your Goals and Expectations
Most of us are working toward several goals at any given time, and have a set of expectations about what our life will look like in the future. Change can disrupt these plans. Instead of clinging to what made sense before, make a fresh start and reevaluate your life from a new perspective. Change is life’s way of keeping us from complacency, and we can be better off.
7. Assess What Can Be Learned and Preserved
Just because something changes doesn’t mean you have to give up what you learned or liked about the way things were before. Having children has significantly reshaped how my wife and I spend our time, but we still go on childless dates and overnight trips to preserve something of those early days when it was just the two of us.
Change doesn’t have to be an enemy. We’re occasionally given moments in life when we can choose what happens, but more often, we’re swept up in changes that will happen regardless of how we feel about them. In those times, embracing change maximizes your chances of being happy and exerting some influence on how things ultimately end up. It’s a path I wholeheartedly recommend.
