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Embracing Change

Written by: Sheri Andrunyk

Article Overview: Whether in our personal or professional lives, there is one guarantee that holds true - there will be change… and now, more than ever! As Alan Deutschman shares in his book, Change or Die, “Change doesn’t have to be something that happens to you. You can make it happen – actively, intentionally, and deliberately – if you develop an understanding of how change really works…” One of the ways we can begin to understand how change really works, in order to be more open to it, is to ask ourselves better questions about circumstances (or people) in our lives. Enjoy this excerpt from another one of Sheri's workshops for entrepreneurs. She has become an expert at not only at'embracing change' yet 'inspiring and facilitating change' as well!

Embracing Change

Embracing Change


Whether in our personal or professional lives, there is one guarantee that holds true - there will be change… and now, more than ever!

As Alan Deutschman shares in his book, Change or Die, “Change doesn’t have to be something that happens to you. You can make it happen – actively, intentionally, and deliberately – if you develop an understanding of how change really works…”

One of the ways we can begin to understand how change really works, in order to be more open to it, is to ask ourselves better questions about circumstances (or people) in our lives.

We can consider looking at things from another vantage point, to see if it might appear any different or provide more clarity for us. We have a choice.

This doesn’t mean that we have to adopt someone else’s view necessarily; it simply provides more options; which may offer ideas that help you move towards a more positive outcome, ideally for all concerned.

Below, I’ve included an acronym for CHANGE:

Connect – to who you are.Listen to your inner voice/guide – it helps you to ‘embrace change’ and ‘remain true to yourself, your values, and your loved ones’. Once you are centered – know that there is tremendous value and more ease in ‘connecting’ with others too.

Honour – yourself, your time and all that is important to you. Honour others – give them the benefit of the doubt – most people we associate with do have good intentions. Treat others as you would have them treat you.

Awareness – allow for flexibility – in your thinking and in your doing. Notice what you ‘pay attention’ to, where you are putting your energies (and it is serving you and the greater good, so to speak).

New – Be open to new things – this stimulates new thoughts, new opportunities, new actions.

Growth – Be committed to your own personal growth and learning. It’s energizing for you – and others around you.

Effort – Assuming the positive, most things that require ‘effort’ are ‘worth the effort’. I’m not talking about the word ‘struggle’ here, although they can appear close in nature at times. I believe that consistent ‘effort’ brings about a feeling of ‘effortlessness’ in our lives – a flow that we all strive for, where things seem ‘easy’ for a time. Although there is a season for everything, and ‘ebb and flow’, this feeling of things seeming ‘easy’ for a time, doesn’t just happen.

Can you think of a time when you changed your thinking, and it changed your outcome or circumstances for the better? I can…

Let me share a couple of examples of my change in thinking that has been incredibly helpful and empowering:

• When I was in my 20’s and very shy, I got my entrepreneurial start and became a Beauty Consultant with Aloette Cosmetics.

I never thought I would be in ‘sales’ of any kind. I’ve since realized that every job (including being a mother and wife) have a ‘sales dimension’ to it.

Ultimately, I believed in the Aloette products and used them myself and I wanted others to benefit, but I didn’t want to come across pushy (I was so worried about what others thought of me).

I learned quickly that I would only come across that way if I was not thinking of their best interests, which I knew was not me.

I also learned that my prospective clients counted on me to be helpful and provide them with the confidence and knowledge they needed in order make their purchasing decisions.

In addition, I learned the hard way that if I didn’t speak up and give it my best, someone else would.

This, in and of itself, created an amazing foundation for me, and contributed to a very successful career; and also many wonderful long-term relationships, professionally and personally.

• Another example was when our son was small – I made a choice – I could try and force ‘my way’ of parenting (given my strong maternal instincts).

Or since I grew up with a sister and many aunts in my life, and thus had less experience when it came to little boys, I could consider listening to my husband.

I chose to consult with him, so I could enlighten my thinking and understand and parent our son better! It made the process easier and as a result (in part)I am blessed with a wonderful relationship with our son to this day.

We all have a special purpose, and yours is to find and follow it, wherever it may lead…

• What do you think your purpose is? (Write it down – personally, professionally.)
• What are you passionate about?
• What are your strengths? What’s great about you?
• How are you using them in your life to help others (and yourself)?
• Do you have some goals or things you aspire to, that you would love to make happen in your life?

When we are centered in our life; we know the things that we won’t waver on (and also where we can be flexible)… When we know our strengths and build on them… When we continue to strive to achieve or live our ideal life, we create new thinking, and we do new things.

Tony Robbins says, Live With Passion.

I would add to that, Live with Passion and Purpose!

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Article Tags: acronym, alan deutschman, benefit of the doubt, circumstances, clarity, connecting with others, embracing change, flexibility, good intentions, honour, inner voice, new opportunities, new thoughts, personal growth, professional lives, vantage point, voice guide



Related Forum Posts
Re: Spellcheck? - [quote="TheAnonymousMan":2f894q6j]When discussing the majority of people I would definitely say that most people hit the "Change" or "Ignore" button without thinking too much about the correct spelling of a word. All bosses are concerned about is getting the report to the Directors meeting on time.[/quote:2f894q6j] That probably depends on what the "majority" are trying to accomplish. I have word set to alert me about misspellings and grammatical problems, so I fix most as I go. But I also add names etc to the dictionary because I get tired of seeing the red and green squiggles when I know the info is right. If you're only going to click "Change" or "Ignore" then why bother to take the time to use spell check????? Business people that I work for want the info compiled in a timely manner and they want it right - which is fine because that's the way I strive to do any project. Sending out a memo, letter, report etc with obvious spelling and grammatical mistakes makes the person and the company look bad as far as I'm concerned. Shri
Ladies Who Launch book party - I'm only abouat 6 hours from DC... but I'm not going to be able to make the signing... I wish 'em well, however. Anyway, I check their website periodically to see what's happening, and here's the press release for it: We've written about you in our book and now are thrilled to meet you in person! Our book LADIES WHO LAUNCH: Embracing Entrepreneurship & Creativity as a Lifestyle (St. Martin's Press; May 1, 2007; $24.95) has come out and we are coming to Washington, DC to celebrate you, women who want to say "YES!" to their dreams by launching a business, project or life! We'll be at Barnes & Noble, 555 12th St. NW, Washington DC, on Wednesday, May 9, 2007 and we would be honored if you would come out and meet us and the extraordinary ladies of the Washington, DC Ladies Who Launch Incubator program. We have invited several special guests including: Priscilla Stephan: Founder of Bakana Style Kalle Diarra: Founder of Arbre De Vie Products These ladies will talk more about how to launch, and, why launching, whether for entrepreneurial reasons or just for fun, leads to a happier, more fulfilling life. Being around like-minded, inspiring women is one of the best ways to get you moving toward your goals and dreams.
Re: e-Commerce and e-Payment providers - Hi GT It is only fairly recently that people in South Africa have been able to get full use of Paypal as we were only able at one time to make payments but not receive them. Fortunately this has now changed. I have received money through Global X Change for one of the affiliate programs that I promote and have found them pretty good as the money is normally transferred directly into my bank account within 2-3 days and I have not had any problems with them. MichelleJ
Re: Obama Wants Social Security for Illegals - [quote="Alan Mater":3kaa8sg4] Obama WILL make changes... but they're not the changes we as a country need or should look forward to.[/quote:3kaa8sg4] Sad but this is exactly how I feel about it. Change is coming - but unless I'm really wrong, it is not a change this country needs. Amazing how much a good speaker with a good speech writer can do. If you paid attention to the things he said "off script" - much of it is frightening. Chris
Are you an Opportunity Addict? - 1) if you find yourself saying yes without thinking about how it will affect your other priorities 2) you have over 10 projects/inventions going on at the same time and this seems normal to you 3) you have spent hundreds and thousands of dollars on manufacturing, prototypes, etc. not to mention thousands of hours of your time....but you havent followed through on any of it 4) most of your projects are falling behind or have completely fallen off your radar....which is fueling your frustration The first step in recovery is to recognize this as a pattern of self sabotage. If you are clear in what your overall goals and objectives are, you should be able to create a lens through which you measure opportunities. You create your life, and your to do list. Change, Add, Remove, Adjust time-lines - whatever you like. But remember that every piece of unfinished business - stays that way J


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