I recently heard someone say that it is not a matter of science, but a matter of psychology when it comes to how it is we change our beliefs. When I heard it, it was like another piece of the puzzle fell into place. As someone in the business of change, both personally and professionally, I am ever trying to understand what it is that gets us to open enough to take that step into unknown territory. To enter into the rich and mysterious place of change.
Willingly.
It’s not like we don’t know something needs to shift. It’s not like we’re not getting feedback from our lives and others that something really must change this time. It’s not like we all don’t long for something more. We do. So why don’t we change then?
For sure, we’re afraid. Afraid we won’t be up to the task. Afraid to lose our hard won identities about who we believe we are. Afraid our lives won’t fit us anymore. Afraid of losing something. Afraid others will leave us. Afraid to admit that what we’ve been doing was foolish, and even destructive, and has maybe even hurt others. Afraid, it’s too late.
So many fears all piled into one resistant, and often intractable, blob.
But if we had a way to enter more gracefully and intentionally into The Land of Change, maybe we wouldn’t be so afraid. Maybe we would be able to bear the discomfort around all the adjustments we would need to make with more courage. Personally, I believe that way is seeded in wanting something more than what you’re afraid of, and then honing in on that with great single-mindedness and perseverance.
If you had that, would you enter into the change more willingly? Would you be able to shift because what you wanted was more powerful than your fears? I think so. I would even go so far as to say, I know so.
To be clear, you already have that. We all have that. It’s a matter then of pulling it to the surface so you can see it and be energized by it. What’s yours? What do you secretly long for? What pulls at you? What have you been wishing for your whole life?
To change it is to evolve. It is to move closer to what lives deep within us. It is to contribute at the highest of levels. With that known, how does change look to you now?