7 Stages You Must Go Through to Create Positive Change in Your Life
It’s a tough process but not impossible - so you must want it!
“The world hates change, yet it is the only thing that has brought progress."
Charles Kettering
One thing I discovered about change in my life is that change occurs slowly.
There is no fast track to lasting positive change and there are stages to go through to get there.
This article takes you through these stages.
Stan Goldberg Ph. D carried out twenty-five years of research on ‘How People Change’. In his findings, he discovered that change occurs in stages.
He says it’s a gradual process that is tough but not impossible and it doesn’t have to be traumatic.
The reason change is traumatic for so many people is that for too long they live an unreflective life, going in the wrong direction, not listening to their true needs and avoiding past issues.
They keep going forward without acknowledging their problems until one day, they hit a crisis. Their world falls apart and they wonder, what happened?
This is painful, and yes, even traumatic.
What Goldberg means is that if you consciously decide to look at your life as a whole – personally and professionally and work on making positive changes, aligning your deepest desires and values with your actions, the transition will not be traumatic.
You’ve heard the expression 'a stitch in time, saves nine '– everyone needs to make changes at some point in their life but if we fail to make the changes in time we could face a crisis later.
It’s about taking personal responsibility for yourself and your future.
Fear of Change
Before we discuss the steps to change, let us first look at our fear of change.
Even though change is good, we cling to what is, terrified of upsetting the status quo. We fight hard to hold on.
The resistance to change is strong and even if their situations are damaging to their physical, mental, emotional, and spiritual health, they still hold on for fear of the unknown.
Goldberg says change is frightening and this is why we resist it. ‘We resist change, but fear of the unknown can result in clinging to status quo behaviors, no matter how bad they are.’
The only way to overcome fear of change is to decide to do it regardless and move through it gently. As Susan Jeffers says, ‘Feel the fear and do it anyway’.
To make the transition toward positive change in your life this year, I have compiled 7 simple steps to help you…
#1. Recognize Your Need To Change
The first step to change is always awareness, you first need to know you have to change, you have to see that something isn’t working as well as it could.
Self-awareness is the most powerful resource we have to effect change in our lives. It brings new insights into our patterns of behavior, reactions, and habits.
When you become aware, it allows you to choose something different that brings better results.
#2. Make A Decision To Take The First Step
Commit yourself to the decision to change. When you reflect on your situation and decide to commit to starting to change, you are already halfway there.
There is power in making a decision. You see the need for change and you have hope of a better future. It is better to do the emotional work than get stuck in your pain.
#3. Examine Your Life To See What Areas Need Change
You can do this yourself by writing down all the different areas of your life such as work, family, relationships, finances, health, self-development, and so on.
Examine each area and ask yourself how satisfied am I with each area using a scale of 0 -10 ( 0 being – very dissatisfied and 10 being very satisfied ).
#4. Invest Time and Effort Into Making This Happen
Again, commit to the process. First, you need to commit to the decision and then follow through on this commitment to the point of completion. This is about believing in yourself and believing that this will work for you and that you deserve more.
We build self–belief when we make decisions, take successful actions, and accept personal responsibility for both our successes and our failures.
#5. Be Confident
Confidence requires practice. It requires mistakes and the courage to fail. You will have setbacks, but all successful people fail many times on their way to success. You activate your self–confidence by believing in yourself.
It’s about having boldness and courage and not caring what others think of you. Dare to be different.
#6. Be Persistent
At this point, it gets tough, there will be some pain as the process begins, but remember it’s normal to feel this way as you are moving out of your comfort zone – it may feel like you are pushing a rock up a hill, but believe me, it gets easier. Don’t give up! .. soon you will see rewards for your persistence and determination.
#7. Be Willing To Let Go Of The Old
Be willing to let go of old habits, behaviors, things, people, and anything else that no longer serves you. It takes time to let go of habits and to form new ones.
Be aware of this, so if you slip back now and again you won’t have to worry, this is all part of the process. Dust yourself off and get back up.
A Few Final Pointers For Your Journey To Positive Change –
Let go and trust
Desire something better
Believe you can change
Don’t give up
Wait with expectation – it is coming!
If you decide to start this process, feel free to leave a comment below or send me an email.
I wish you every success on your journey toward change!
Life is always changing, so we may as well move with it. :)
God bless,
Órla
Image by Alexas Fotos on Pexels