Can A New Approach To Change Lead To More Happiness?
Change.
How does that word make you feel?
It’s constant. Always imminent. Sometimes scary. After all, when we encounter change, we’re stepping into something new, something unfamiliar, something unknown.
Change of seasons, change of career, change of lifestyle… think about what’s changing in your life right now. Whether you’re experiencing a big milestone or a subtle shift, change shakes things up. It interrupts our daily rhythm until we move through it and into a new flow. Only to experience its disruption all over again.
On the other side of change is possibility. Opportunity.
Change is a necessary requirement for growth, development, evolution. After all, we never really “arrive” in life - we are always evolving, always becoming.
We often encounter change abruptly. Not giving it any time or attention until we’re facing it square in the face, hoping with enough time the discomfort will pass. It can lead to feeling divided, as our energy is split between where we are and where we’re going.
I face change every year when I leave the lake and return to the city. I live in Toronto but my heart home is on Lake of the Woods in Kenora, Canada. For years, I’ve faced fall feeling blue and full of disappointment and discontent. No matter what I did, I always felt like I left a part of myself behind. My soul was divided, my energy split, between where I’d been (the lake) and where I was (the city).
But what about the space in between?
What about the transition between where you are and where you’re going?
I was completely ignoring it. By acknowledging and creating awareness around it, I felt good. I felt whole. I was able to generate happiness for myself.
When you are approaching a transition, do you always go through it the same way? Do you find yourself feeling unsettled, disrupted, your energy split between where you are and where you’re going? What if you could explore a new way, a different way of approaching transitions and experiencing change?
It begins by being intentional about completing your past.
Transitions feel better when we can experience them with ease and contentment, and it comes from feeling whole and complete with our past experience. Rather than focusing on forgetting, resenting, or regretting what did or didn’t happen, we close the loop on what was so we can move forward to what’s next. Start by reflecting on the following questions:
During this time of transition...
what will I leave behind?
what will I take with me?
This is your opportunity to leave what’s in the past in the past. You create your reality. You create your future. Be aware of what you want to bring with you and what you want to leave behind.
Step into the present moment.
Completing the past allows us to bring our attention to the present and create from where we are now, not where we’ve been.
Give yourself a moment to get present. Plant for feet firmly on the ground. Feel the earth supporting you, holding you. Take a deep breath in, and out. Look around and take in the details of your surroundings: the walls, the furniture, the colours, the textures. Take another deep breath.
Completing the past allows us to face the future with choice.
What do you want? What’s next for you? What do you want to make happen in your life? When you connect to what you want, you not only boost happiness but your happiness lasts longer.
There is power in choice. Lead from there, operate from there.
Next time you face change, ask yourself: Are you ready for it? Are you prepared for it? Are you approaching it in a way that gives you grace and ease? Remember the space between where you and where you want to go. Acknowledge it, own it, and move forward feeling whole.
What will you choose next?
Kirsten Schmidtke is a professional coach, creator, and lover of lake life. She works with leaders, creators, and entrepreneurs to help them up-level their careers, businesses, and lives. Are you ready to explore what’s possible for you? Contact Kirsten to start the conversation!
