We all face change at one point or the other in our life. Some changes are initiated by us and we love it and are expectant of it and enjoy the preparations that are involved in making it happen. On other occasions, change can be very distressing. Usually occurring without warning, we are usually unprepared for it. We can feel quite disorientated when change is unexpected and it can produce physical reactions we may feel we have little control over.
Facing unplanned change with a prepared mind helps to re orientate life even when it seems to be out of our control. If we accept that change is inevitable, we see the sense in thinking about and preparing to deal with it well ahead of when it actually happens. It also helps us reflect on how we will deal with our responses when faced with stress and change.
Taking the time to plan and prepare for change is not inviting fate, but facing reality People who work in occupations that involve dealing with sudden unexpected emergencies, are in a state of readiness at all times. They learn to anticipate all possible scenarios by learning how to deal with them before they occur. They learn how to prevent the situation or minimize its harm, and they learn to enact certain actions when these events do occur.
Let us learn from some great quotes on change befor we proceed with the different ways to prepare for change.
Quotes on Change
“The only way to make sense out of change is to plunge into it, move with it, and join the dance”.
Alan Watts
“I have noticed even people who claim everything is predestined, and that we can do nothing to change it, look before they cross the road”.
Stephen Hawking
“There is nothing so stable as change.”
Bob Dylan
“To change ones life: Start immediately. Do it flamboyantly.”
William James
“You must take personal responsibility. You cannot change the circumstances, the seasons, or the wind, but you can change yourself. That is something you have charge of”.
“Face the facts of being what you are, for that is what changes what you are.”
Soren Kierkegaard
“Things alter for the worse spontaneously, if they be not altered for the better designedly”.
Francis Bacon
“If you change the way you look at things, the things you look at change”.
Wayne Dyer
“There is nothing permanent except change”.
Heraclitus
“We must all obey the great law of change. It is the most powerful law of nature.”
Edmund Burke
“If there is anything that we wish to change in the child, we should first examine it and see whether it is not something that could better be changed in ourselves”.
Carl Jung
“It is change, continuing change, inevitable change, that is the dominant factor in society today. No sensible decision can be made any longer without taking into account not only the world as it is, but the world as it will be”.
Isaac Asimov
“For the past 33 years, I have looked in the mirror every morning and asked myself: ‘If today were the last day of my life, would I want to do what I am about to do today?’ And whenever the answer has been ‘No’ for too many days in a row, I know I need to change something”.
Steve Jobs
“A fanatic is one who can’t change his mind and won’t change the subject.”
Winston Churchill
“If you do not change direction, you may end up where you are heading”.
Lao Tzu
“We cannot change anything until we accept it. Condemnation does not liberate, it oppresses.”
Carl Jung
“Life belongs to the living, and he who lives must be prepared for changes.”
Johann Wolfgang von Goethe
“They must often change, who would be constant in happiness or wisdom”.
Confucius
“Change will not come if we wait for some other person or some other time. We are the ones we’ve been waiting for. We are the change that we seek.”
Barack Obama
“If you don’t like something, change it. If you can’t change it, change your attitude”.
Maya Angelou
“You must be the change you wish to see in the world”.
Mahatma Gandhi
How to Prepare for Change
- Face the Reality. The world as we see it today has changed due to Covid-19. Things have definitely changed. The way we relate with each other. There is also change in our official life, jobs will change and lost and it is best we all accept the reality of the present and change for the future.
- Plan for the change. We gain valuable insight into how to prepare for change by learning how to apply approaches to potential change and stressful situations from people who work in emergencies. The higher the risk of something happening, the more we should anticipate it likely to happen. People living in areas where there is a high risk of a natural disaster occurring, prepare for its inevitably, by preparing their surroundings each year and psychologically being ready for it. Also, having a plan B while having a plan A is a good way to plan for change.
- Learn to manage your motivation. We can learn to manage our responses and thoughts in times of minor changes and challenge. As we do this, we are providing ourselves with invaluable training. Learning how to deal with the many minor challenges and changes we face daily, will help us to develop the skills to deal with the unexpected major ones. Being psychologically prepared for change is possible. Although it is impossible to know what it will be like to face being a parent for example, we can prepare ourselves by reading and identifying possible areas of concern we may personally face in our new parenting role.
Change creates new possibilities, challenges and confusion as well. When change outside our control occurs, we must embrace it; using the quote from Maya Angelou, “If you don’t like something, change it. If you can’t change it, change your attitude”. In this uncertain time, make effort to adjust your attitude to the reality, go back to the drawing table. Begin again gradually, tap into the benefit of your loved relationship for motivation and know that success in the new reality is gradual but learn to celebrate your little progress along the way.
Thanks for reading and kindly leave your comment below and share with someone.
Cheers,
Joseph.
Joseph@ideasforboom.com
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