As the Bob Dylan song says, “times they are a changin’”.  Some changes are exciting and fun.  Others are frightening and produce overwhelming anxiety.  The reaction depends on the person and their situation in life.  I will never forget watching my daughter drive away from our house for the first time.  My stomach was in a tight knot and my breath was rapid and shallow.  My daughter on the other hand was exhilarated and smiling broadly at her new found freedom and responsibility. We each had completely different reactions to exactly the same change. 

 Some changes we experience and even bring on ourselves cause both positive and negative reactions at the same time.  Getting a new car is a change that does that for me.  I am excited to drive away in a sparkling clean car running smoothly with new features to explore.  At the same time I am already worried about the first scratch it will get in the paint, the increased registration and taxes of a newer car and fearful that it will not live up to my expectations. I am singing while my stomach is in a knot. 

 So how do we embrace changes that redirect our daily routines and lessen the tightness that invades our bodies?  How do we move from fear to song in less time and incorporate the new device, direction, routine into our life?

 Tip 1:  Focus on the positive outcome.  What will you have or be after you make the change that does not now exist?  Write down the positive outcome of the change and refer to it as often as you need to in order to keep yourself moving forward.

 Tip 2:  Find support.  It is easier to stay in our current routines and habits than change even when we know the result will be a good thing.  So find someone that can support you as you transition from what is to what will be.  Your support person should focus on your agenda and commitment not their own.  Choose your support carefully and thoughtfully.

 Tip 3:  Keep the long view.  The older we get the more quickly time seems to go by.  The time you spent making the change will seem insignificant before you know it.  Remember when your children were babies and you could not get enough sleep night after night?  In the midst of those sleepless nights it seemed you would never get enough sleep again.  Looking back now it seems like those days were a very short slice of your life. 

 When you feel your body tighten and the voices in your head rebel against change, take a deep breath and use these three tips to embrace the process!  “He that gets hurt will be he who has stalled” according to Bob Dylan so do not let fear stall you.

Tags: attitude, Change, mindset