What is to be found at the Crux of Success?

Resist for short-term relief, embrace for long-term gain

As fundamental as change is to sustaining life, it’s still quite frightening.

Why do we find ourselves resisting, avoiding and running from change?

When we think about a major upcoming change in our lives, our focus is primarily on the result and how vastly different it is from our current reality.

Is this gap between point A and point B that makes the thought of change so intimidating. Between that gap is the unknown, ambiguity, and uncharted territory. We may think we know what it will take based on theory but we’ve never actually walked the path for ourselves.

Learning how to maneuver and manage the changes within our lives reduces likelihood of experiencing anxiety.

We tend to make the mistake of associating change with who we are. The change itself doesn’t define us, it’s how we react.

Resisting change feels like swimming against a rip current.

It’s painful, exhausting and pretty much pointless when it comes down to it. However, change doesn’t necessarily have to feel like a rip current. It all boils down to our perception and attitude.

Desperately clinging to comfort

We all enjoy comfort. We find solace in the spaces we’ve created for ourselves. We grow attached to all the intricacies of our little world.

There are two distinct parts of my job. It just so happened that I was introduced to the web design portion first. It’s the portion I spent my first two months working on.

I mastered it, but I also felt complacent.

When it came time to begin the second half, managing their databases, I felt resistant even though I was well aware that it was part of my job. It was still a major change and I now had to adjust to having both on my plate.

Black and white thinking

No two experiences are the same due to individual perception.

Thinking in an all-or-nothing fashion will not help you to embrace the fact that change is fluid.

Most of life occurs in the gray area, things aren’t always clear-cut and definitive.

This can be viewed as the upside to change … the possibilities are endless and your potential for greatness is boundless.

Think of change as a new mini adventure. We tend to make the mistake of associating change with who we are. The change itself doesn’t define us, it’s how we react.

Attitude is everything.

Adopting a more positive outlook on change involves categorizing each change and breaking them into smaller, more manageable pieces.

It takes vision, discipline and willpower but it also highlights the fact that the formula for success is a lot simpler than we make it out to be. This ultimately means success is a lot more attainable than we tell ourselves.

Create a list

Draw two columns, one for the changes within your control and the other for the changes outside of your control.

As you create your list, you begin to notice that our control resides in the process.

It comes down to the habits we practice daily, even the smallest decisions make a difference because they compound over time.

In time, you realize that the incremental decisions of commitment are what shape the end result and the bigger picture. Change doesn’t seem as scary as before.

Learn to dissect your challenges into smaller, more manageable pieces. Once you decide what lies outside of your control, refrain from giving it any additional thought.

These are your boundaries.

If nothing else, take these words with you …

You can’t force your job to rehire you and you cannot wish the pandemic away.

To regain your sense of control, you must immerse yourself in the process.

It takes vision, discipline and willpower but it also highlights the fact that the formula for success is a lot simpler than we make it out to be.

This ultimately means success is a lot more attainable than we tell ourselves.

At the crux of success you find change, as it is life’s constant and the law of the land.

We watch as the seasons change, as the bright days transition into nightfall, as small seeds become beautiful plants and as babies grow and mature.

There’s change all around us.

It represents expansion and evolution.

If you’re not changing, you’re simply not living.