We all do it…we all moan about how things are in our life. Some do it more than others. Worryingly though, very few of us actually do anything about it. We just keep moaning about things. What would happen if we actually took action instead of moaned about everything? Making a change is the easiest thing in the world…but…
It’s Always Been This Way
Nothing ever needs to stay how it was. Nothing ever should stay how it was. Change is inevitable but many people baulk at it. They like the status quo. The trouble is, if things don’t change, growth can’t happen. If growth can’t happen you become stagnant. In my years as a musical director/director I’ve always tried to be original. Sadly though many amateur groups give the line “We’ve always done it this way…” as if the mere suggestion of trying something new is heresy!
Then you get the people who do things exactly the same way every time but are surprised when they get the same results. What is more surprising is when they’re shocked when someone tells them this. If you’re not happy with the way things are, only you have the power to change them. You can’t sit back and wait for someone else to change it. Not only is it unlikely to happen, but more importantly if they did change things, it would never be to the way you want it to be.
Make A Change
Of course there are some things that need to be constant. Things like gravity, the seasons, light and so on. These things need to remain the same and not change. If they changed things would be irreparably “broken”. But if something is wrong in your life, do the necessary things to make the change. Talking about it isn’t going to get it done. Doing it is!
For example, if you tend to have a negative outlook on life you may want to swap it for a positive one…who wouldn’t!? Why would anyone choose to live negatively all the time? The trouble is very few take that essential first step. But to be honest, making the change is actually the easiest thing in the world. Sometimes the change made is instantly permanent…other times it needs perseverance.
It’s Easy…?
As I’ve said several times already, making a change is the easiest thing in the world. The difficult thing is maintaining it. People try to do it all at once. That’s never going to work. My solution is take it ten minutes at a time. Say you want to start thinking positively…doing that is actually easy. Every time you think negatively, you counteract it with a positive thing. But maintaining it so that the change becomes permanent is difficult. So take it ten minutes at a time. For the next ten minutes you will only think positive thoughts. Once you’ve mastered the ten minutes, try for another ten. Then a month later, try 20 minutes at a time….then a month later 40 minutes at a time…and so on.
The caveat here must be though, that if you don’t manage to maintain the minutes at a time you set yourself, do not beat yourself up about it. You are after all human. Also remember, that acknowledging a negative thought is fine - just don’t dwell on it or let it consume you. Be kind to yourself and resolve to do better (even just a second better) next time. If you struggle with ten minutes, do five! Things will only change once you let them do so. And change is not a bad thing. Change is a good thing. Give it a good chance. Don’t just try and do it once and then give up because you fell at the first hurdle. Pick yourself up and keep trying.