The Reality of Change

Let’s talk about the reality of making changes.

1)For most people change only occurs when the pain of change is less than the pain of staying the same.

2)Most people perceive the pain of change to be much greater than it will actually be.

These two factors have a tremendous hold on people; keeping them from making the changes they may need or want to make. It’s that old fear of the unknown. The funny thing, at least for me, is that when I do push through any fear and make a change I find the pain was not near what I thought and I always end up asking myself what took me so long.

Another fact about change is that there is an easy, quick part and a harder, longer part. Making a decision to change is easy and quick. BAM – I tell myself I am going to change. I may even spend a little time and put together a plan of action. It’s always easy to write down a plan. The slower and harder part becomes implementing the plan and getting results.

Let’s use “improving my physical condition” as an example. I can easily make the decision to get up 30 minutes early to exercise on a daily basis. That’s the easy and quick part of the change process. The harder and longer part of the process are the weeks of getting up, working out, and waiting to see and feel noticeable results. Sticking with your original commitment and developing a routine is the real pain of change. The results are well worth it but sometimes it’s hard to convince yourself of that when you are lying in a warm bed and just want to sleep a little longer. The real payoff comes a few months down the road when your daily energy levels are higher, your muscle tone is better and your overall physical health has improved.

Change is “scary” only if you tell yourself it is. Think about it as an exciting adventure. Start small and see how many little changes you can accomplish. Build up to larger and larger changes until you have designed and are living the life that you want.