Tag: grow

The Need for Change

Change can be scary sometimes, especially if there is an unknown future. However, for some reason, I absolutely love change. Yes, I still get the anxious feeling when there’s uncertainty in how things will change, but in general, I am quite comfortable with it. I am writing this post for those of you who have a hard time with change and would like to know how some people manage it.

I learned to adapt at a young age.

I think my comfort with change comes from moving to a few different towns growing up. I would have to get used to a new room in a new house in a new neighbourhood and go to a new school with new people. Then once I was in university, I would have a new living space a few times a year – from dorms to my parent’s house to an apartment back to my parents house, to a basement suite to a upper level rental and back to my parent’s house.

I got used to moving around so much that I found it difficult to stay in one place, almost as if I needed more stimulation. I randomly decided to move to Kelowna so I would be forced to learn a whole new way of living. I’ve already lived in 4 different places in the 4 years that I’ve been here, and with each place I’ve managed to adapt to it and make a new routine.

I couldn’t imagine permanently settling down in a house… If I ever do that, I’m sure I would be doing some sort of renovation every couple of years as I would need a change of scenery.

I have a wild imagination.

I think that having a creative, imaginative mind has a hard time sticking to the same routine, schedule, and surroundings for long periods of time. I enjoy having variety in my life and can get bored easily if I’ve had the same routine for a while. This eventually causes me to try something new, after having a pity party that nothing is interesting anymore.

I’m still trying to understand myself, because sometimes it causes me to make impulsive decisions and I’m not sure if that’s a good thing or not. I mean, the easiest way for something to change is to take a risk and see what happens, right?

I am open-minded.

Since I’ve seen many different ways of living and have learned to adapt to them, I have developed an open mind. I like to listen and understand others’ point of view and thoughts. For those that I don’t agree with, I still try to rationalize why they might think that way to avoid conflict and arguments. This can be both a blessing and a curse – yes, it makes it easier to get along with people and be likable, but it also causes me to be vulnerable to getting hurt by people who take advantage of my passive approach.

That being said, I believe being open-minded is the easiest way to adapt to change. If you have a hard time doing this, try to switch from judgement and assumptions to taking a moment to look at a situation with a different angle. You are not always right.

No matter what, change will cause personal growth.

I have to admit – the adult life has definitely made the feeling of change a lot more difficult. I have developed an absurd level of anxiety that I am learning how to manage. I never used to be this way, and was always open to new things. I can now understand how others who aren’t so used to change might feel. It’s a lot more comfortable having a certain level of security.

That being said, despite how I think about the world now, I still remain optimistic about change. It might be more of an emotional struggle than it used to be, but I always come out on the positive side of things and look forward to a new future. I think the only way we can be comfortable with change is to be grateful about the past, and to find the positive things about the future and be excited to learn something new about yourself.

I think it’s important to see who you are in different situations, because you may just surprise yourself. Maybe you find out what you’re not good at, what you don’t like, and who you can’t get along with, but that is still a move in the right direction. We focus so much on making the right move to see what we are good at, do something we like, and be around people that become our best friends – but we only learn to appreciate these things by experiencing the opposite.

Change is inevitable.

Life will constantly change and there’s nothing we can do to stop it. Whether it’s a slow, gradual change, a quick abrupt change, intentional or not, we will be forced to adapt and move forward. As long as you trust yourself that you will be okay, you will certainly be able to figure out a new way of survival and thrive.

Enjoy the Journey

Life is too unpredictable to focus on an end goal. We tend to focus on what we want to accomplish rather than what we are learning every day. The above picture was taken on an average day where we just needed to get out of the house. It’s just the same trail by our place that we’ve walked on many times before, but this is one of few pictures where we are both genuinely smiling instead of posing. My boyfriend was being an idiot and making me laugh as usual, which is something I make sure to appreciate every day.

We might not always feel like we have what we want or that life isn’t quite “perfect” yet, but I guarantee when I look back at this picture I will remember how good life actually was. Even looking at it while writing this post makes me calm down and realize how awesome it is that I get to be myself around someone who loves me every single day, and how the good days are actually really good! Here is what I have learned that helps me enjoy the journey.

Humans are meant to learn

I hope you don’t think that as soon as you have that job you’ve always wanted, or the big house you’ve been striving for, that you’ll suddenly stop needing to learn and grow. There will always be things to stress you out, or unpredictable situations and you will always be working towards something. If you think about where you are now, can you think of any failures or struggles that you’ve learned from? YES. Of course you can! You’ve learned from it and are now living with more knowledge than you had before and growing from it.

Think about what’s important

Ideally I would say, “look back on your life as if you were 100 years old, what do you remember?” but I’m assuming there’s not a lot of 100 year olds reading this post. So when you think back on your life as it is so far at whatever age you are, what do you remember most? It’s likely that you mostly remember memories that gave you emotions whether it’s positive or negative rather than items you bought or things you had. The positive memories bring you joy, and the negative memories gave you lessons. That’s why you need to remind yourself about what’s actually important in life – the experiences rather than what you have.

Appreciate where you are now

The best way to remember to enjoy the journey is to truly appreciate where you are right now, because you are currently living the journey. What are your current struggles? What are you learning from it? What are you working on right now to achieve your goals? What are you grateful for? Are you acknowledging every small accomplishment? I think that answering these questions helps keep you grounded and to remember that the amazing life you want depends on what you’re doing today, and not what you might have in the future.

Don’t wait to live a great life, make the life you’re living great by taking a step back and enjoying the process. We are meant to struggle, learn and grow over and over again until the day we die.