Succeeding Series, this article discusses the obstacles to change and how to overcome those obstacles.
Why Not Change?
Change sometimes seems like too much effort. We are not as unhappy with things the way they are as they would be if we had to work hard changing them. When items become rough, people who feel this way typically quit up! “Easier said than done,” I think.
Sometimes we can’t decide what we want anyway. We’re at a loss. We know that we could be happier, but we aren’t sure what we want to accomplish. When it comes to it, we realize that we lack the wisdom and guidance to make the choices required for change.
Avoid Busy Work and Develop a Creative Plan
Hard work has a way of not sounding too appealing! Sure, you will have to work hard to make a change, but chances are you are working hard now! So much busy work! Busy work is what the teachers used to give you in school when they wanted to go to the teacher’s lounge to smoke and drink coffee. Remember those assignments of 25 sentences that you had to copy verbatim and add punctuation? Did these exercises help you, or were they more for the teacher’s advantage? Wouldn’t you have learned more about writing your sentences and doing less copy work? Sure it would have been better, but the teacher would have had to pay attention when she graded that.
Life is always waiting to provide more busy work for those likely to get in trouble if left idle. Habits die hard. Are you still giving yourself busy work, or are you operating at your true creative potential. There are many ways to do things. If you make your mind work for you and not against you, you will have plenty of time to be creative. You will save work by making the right changes in your life. Your career will be more rewarding, and your thoughts will finally be your own to do with as you will.
That said, hard work still has its place. The difference is that your hard work will be rewarded using creativity, and most of it will be a labor of love. In addition, you will learn to enjoy your work, no matter what it is, because you will realize that the “right” kind of work moves you closer to your goals.
Making Decisions
Decisions are hard sometimes. You may need to get the guidance, divine and/or human. You may need to do research, but decisions have to be made if you want to live life to its fullest. Yes, if you make sensible choices, you can improve your life. Decisions should not be taken lightly or made on a whim, but if you don’t make a choice, there will be detailed factors that will choose for you. Isn’t it better to have a choice in your life than allow things to happen to you? Recognize your preferences. Consider your options carefully. Don’t just let life happen to you. Taking conscious action today may save you a lot of heartaches. Pray for guidance, seek advice, research, and make an intelligent choice not based on fear or apathy. You’ll be happy.
Your Success is Your Fault.
If you don’t value your own life to try to make the right decisions to improve it, no one else will take the time to ensure that you are taken care of. You are no longer a child, and you have to make your own decisions; then, you have to accept responsibility for decisions.
I once heard a college Teacher say that students flunked out of college because they were accustomed to being nagged to do their homework. Teachers in grade school, and to a lesser extent, high school, take an active interest in their student’s work and bring poor marks to the students and sometimes their parent’s attention right away. On the other hand, college students turn in their assignments or not. No one says, “Why didn’t you do your homework?” Students fail if they don’t do it. Often a student doesn’t even realize that his marks are poor until it is too late because no one is nagging him.
All adult life is just like that. No one makes you do anything. You reap the consequences if you are irresponsible or make poor choices. You make your own choices and then have to live with them. Often you are still living with choices you made years ago.
High-Quality Decisions
Making high-quality decisions now can save you much grief in the future. Once you realize that only you can change your life and that you are responsible for yourself, you are free to make the best choices in life. Finally, you can be free of apathy, fear, and paralyzing emotions that wreck people’s lives. You can learn to be a friend to the universe and reap the benefits of having the universe love you back. Don’t miss out on life. Dare to!
