For the last several years I could tell that my eyesight was getting worse. Road signs were getting closer before I could read them. I knew the Department of Transportation wasn’t responsible for that. Three years ago I renewed my driver’s license and I had to guess at the last two lines of the eye exam. The DMV employee wasn’t paying attention to my answers and I slipped through the crack provided by a lazy employee of the state. I knew my sight was getting worse but I didn’t want to have to start dealing with the hassle of wearing glasses or contacts. I ignored my problem.
Then, one day, something in me shifted. The pain of not being able to see clear became greater than the pain I associated with wearing corrective lenses. So I went to an optometrist and a few hours later, life was clearer... literally.
It wasn’t until I accepted the truth and embraced the change that I realized something remarkable. I had forgotten what it was like to see clear. It was a major shift in my reality. In an instant I could see in a way I had forgotten was possible. People were no longer blurry. I saw the little details of everything around me. This was epic and immediately raised the quality of my life.
Yes, I’ve had to make small changes in my routine. Keeping lenses clean is a pain in the ass. As is remembering to put them on my face in the morning. But eventually it will become my new norm. I have to use tools now to see clearly, but I am a safer driver and in many ways, life comes easier to me because of this improvement. The bottom line is that it is unquestionably worth it.
Have you ever faced a major change in life that scared the piss out of you? You’ve known for a while that everything around you was changing but you refused to accept it. You just weren’t ready. Or maybe you thought if you ignored it long enough, it wouldn’t be real. But it was. We go through this with relationships, jobs, our faith, and much more.
The reason that we so often resist change is because change means more work. On a deeper level, we know that change means certain loss. The loss of identity or the loss of something we have grown comfortable with. More often than not it means the loss of the kind of certainty that makes us feel safe and secure.
The real kicker is that change is inevitable. We can’t stop it from happening. Change is all around us. Refusing to see it won’t slow it down and hiding our heads in the sand only puts us at a huge disadvantage in life.
Here are 3 things you can do to handle the process of change with dignity and power.
1. Identify the changes you're facing.
This is the easy part and needs no explanation. Stop lying to yourself.
2. Accept it.
This is the uncomfortable part and makes the change feel real. But now is the perfect time to stop fighting change. It’s useless anyway. Put that energy towards step three.
3. Embrace change by adapting.
Value and get comfortable with growth and learning. Begin using new tools and new mindsets to make change work for you instead of lying to yourself about it.
What is changing in your life and how are you dealing with it? You can fight change. You can ignore it and pretend it isn’t happening all around you. Eventually you will get steam-rolled by it. Or worse, you get left behind.
Or… you can accept change and adapt to the world around you. Embrace new tools and mindsets so that you can begin thriving again in new ways. You get to choose. Being proactive puts you ahead of the curve. That is always worth the effort.