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Does change make you shiver? Do you shiver in fear of the unknown, the new, the unexpected? Do you shiver in eager excitement and anticipation, instead? Which profile do you fit?
Some of us just go with the flow and accept whatever changes come our way. In many cases that ability is an inborn one, and very much part of our personality. Others of us work really hard to get to the place where change is perceived of as a good thing, even if we haven’t always been that way, or if we were raised with a different perspective about it.
The thing is, the world is in a constant state of change. So you can choose to play it safe, and to keep on being and doing exactly as you always have, ignoring both the subtle and the monumental changes going on around you. In that case, you may find yourself left behind in the dust as people, places and things around you shift with the times. These shifts may or may not be aligned with your own value system, but that is up to you to decide.
There are definitely situations in which caution and playing it safe are quite appropriate. If you are a person who does shiver with fear at the thought of making changes, even changes that your brain is telling you it’s time to make, you can begin in a small way. You can push your comfort out, expanding its boundaries and walls a little at a time. It’s not necessarily a bad thing to move slowly when embracing the new and untried. It allows you to create patterns so that second or third tries at the same, or similar actions, become easier for you.
You may be judging your comfort level for risk by the past. So then, I will ask you to spend some time considering that past. Think about some times in your history when you have stepped outside of your safe zone and taken some risks, or done something you wanted to do, but that was definitely out of character for you. What happened? Did the world fall apart? Did it end in hurt, or in disaster? More than likely, it didn’t end that way but if it did, what learning was part of this experience? If you did get hurt, or fail at something, what inner strengths did you pull out to help you through the situation? Are those strengths available to you now?
It’s a new year. What will 2016 bring to your life? Will you sit back and just wait for things to happen, or will you make an effort to create at least some of what you want?
