Introduction
In life, most things are certainly bound to change and this change is inevitable. Also, like it usually is with most people, accepting these changes in our lives can prove to be difficult. Especially if we are required to change our professional or personal life, this can prove to be even more stressful. However, change is the only perpetual entity in our lives. In fact, adapting to and embracing change is usually simpler to do that to resist.
Did you know that the primary determinant of your personality is your thoughts? How you think tends to reflect on your actions, feelings and general life ambitions. If you hoard negative and unrealistic thoughts in your mind, you are bound to experience many disappointments. You will also miss out on the joy of many wonderful experiences at our exposal.
If and when you decide to embrace change, you begin the journey to attain growth and development in your personal and professional life. This is the first step towards a brighter, more rewarding future.
The unconditional meaning of growth
When we talk about growth, you need to really grasp its true meaning so that you understand why embracing these changes will be important to the whole process. Growth is a transformational process. This means that development has to occur in our emotional, spiritual, intellectual, financial and social circumstances. The intended result of growth is to have a more meaningful life that is more satisfying than the present one. Your relationships will have more meaning, you will be more satisfied with your place of work, and your self-confidence will be at its peak.
Most people want to grow in order to eliminate dissatisfaction in their lives. We all want to have a ‘special’ purpose in this life.
The process of growth and development
Everyone in this world is unique in their own way. This means that there’s no definite strategy that will work for everyone. The journey to achieving personal and professional growth has to be tailored to fit the pathway that you have decided to pursue. Therefore, you first have to work out which pathway you intend to choose and where it’ll lead you (destination, goals, objectives, etc.) If you are still not sure about the path that you’d like to take you can use these tips to guide you towards your own path
Your current state
You need to evaluate yourself by identifying some of your traits. Note down all your habits (both good ones and bad ones), your achievements and current situation. Also, take time to assess your weaknesses as well as your strengths
Your desired state
This is where you will examine your ambitions. Note down the things that you hope to achieve and how you think it will affect your life. If you understand what you need to improve in your life, it will be more straightforward to gain and improve attributes that will bring the desired effect you want.
Direction and requirements
Here you will have to ascertain the experiences and knowledge that you will need in order to reach your destination. Look for resources that will be useful for your journey i.e. books, people etc..
Reasonable timeline
After you craft a list of events and activities that you aim to experience, define the reasonable timelines that’ll guide you as you strive to achieve each milestone in your schedule. These will act as checkpoints and will also encourage you to work even harder towards your goals.
Once you start the process you’ll begin to realize that the results are endless. You’ll discover new meaning in your life, and you also have a fresh determination that you did not know existed. Your hopes will start to become possible because of the new potential in you. You will learn new talents and skills, new relationships, and a more enhanced state of self- confidence.
Benefits of Change
On the subject of embracing change, you will have a better chance of attaining success in your professional and personal life if you are willing to take your chances. Discussed below are some of the benefits that you stand to gain in your professional and personal life if you decide to embrace change starting today.
New Beginnings
The concept of embracing change is about opening a new chapter of your life. We leave our old lives and start to embrace the new life that is certainly more exciting.
Personal growth
The change will give you a new chance to grow and learn new stuff. You will also learn new insights into your life and this will transform you into a better individual.
Rejuvenated Strength
At times when we begin to embrace certain changes in our lives, we experience some discouraging withdrawal effects. For example, if you decide to stop using drugs, you’ll have a hard time dealing with the withdrawal symptoms. However, when you eventually overcome these stresses you become stronger, you also develop the courage to deal with difficult situations in your life.
The Escalation effect
Attempting to make big changes immediately can prove to be very challenging and at times impossible. But, when you decide to start making small changes, in the end, the progress that you’ll have made will be significant. Smaller changes over time will eventually have a bigger impact. This effect is also referred to as the ‘snowball effect’.
New stimulating Routines
Before you start to embrace change, life is usually boring, you keep on doing the same things every day. However, the change makes your routine interesting and arbitrary.
New Opportunities
If you adopt changes in your personal or professional life, different prospects will start to present themselves to you. This is because change presents you with numerous choices, most of which will bring contentment and delight into your life.
Flexibility
You’ll learn how to adapt to new environments when you begin to embrace change in your life. You’ll also learn how to relate to new individuals and new circumstances.
Positive life values
Embracing change allows you to see the world with a new set of eyes. This makes it easier for you to re-evaluate your life values. Afterwards, you will be able to enforce only those values that bring positivity into your life.
Improved lifestyle
Your lifestyle cannot improve by itself; the only way that you can improve it is by embracing change. If you don’t, you’ll be stuck in the same financial situation you are in, you’ll be earning the same income, engaging in the same hobbies, etc. That’s a dull life if you ask me.
8 Ways of welcoming change into your life
- Good Communication Skills
You need to effectively communicate to others especially when you are tackling change. Ineffectual communication skills have negative consequences. Therefore, try your best to learn good communication skills to have a positive impact during this phase of your life.
- Self-Assessment
This will help you to determine your strengths and weaknesses so that you identify areas in your life that need improvement and also so that you can plan for the future. Most companies analyze the performance of their employees to identify their threats, strengths, prospects etc. so that they identify ways to improve their value.
- Understanding the stages of the transformation process
There are five main stages involved when you are embracing change. These include;
- Shock
- Denial
iii. Guilt
- Anger
- Moving on
- Staying positive
Make sure that you keep a positive attitude during this transformation process. This will enable you to overcome any obstacles that you come across with ease.
- Staying alert
This tip is particularly important for your professional life. Be keen to note whether there’s a change in mood in your place of work, whether it’s your boss or your fellow colleagues. Not everyone will be happy that you are trying to take on a new leaf, so be on the alert to note your surroundings.
- See the big picture
Understand that the goals you seek will eventually be more beneficial to your personal and professional life. Harbor this picture in your mind constantly to act as a reminder of where you want to be in future.
- Flexibility
Flexibility and being able to adapt to different circumstances will improve your chances of being successful. This also means that you will be required to constantly re-evaluate the changes that you make to know whether it was useful or not.
- Accepting that change is inevitable
Experiencing change in our professional lives is inevitable as we continue to grow older. The only way to welcome this change without much stress is by first accepting that change is certain and that it’s not any different than the personal transformation that we have to embrace as we grow.
Acceptance will make it easy for you to overcome any hurdles that you will come across during this transformation process. You will also be in a better position to advise younger colleagues and friends on how to embrace change and why change can be useful in their lives.