Change: that which keeps the world moving. Without change there is nothing — there is no death, no birth, no progress. Change is that which allows for the existence of life and that which allows for the possibility of success. However, change is also that which allows for destruction and failure.
Change can be a powerful tool or your worst enemy depending on whether or not you are able to utilize it properly. Most people simply allow for change to occur; they let the world run its course and sit back and watch change unfold. This method of progress is acceptable to some, but for those of us that would like to take better control of our destinies, such a way of living won’t suffice.
For those of us that are more drawn toward having control over our futures and want the ability to guide the world in the direction that we see fit, we will need change to work in our favor. For this reason, we cannot just sit back and watch as the world progresses, we must be the ones to create change and guide the world into the future.
Producing, creating change, is easy. There are basically only four steps to the entire process. The first is to figure out exactly what it is that you want to change and what you want to change it to. The fact is that the world works within cause-and-effect relationships; if you cause something to affect something else, change will manifest itself.
Another something to keep in mind is that while wanting to change the world for the better is admirable, no one loses their virginity attending an orgy. If you want to create change, start closer to home — start with yourself. Figure out what it is about yourself or the way that you live that you are unhappy with.
In a nutshell, audit yourself. Sit down and take a few minutes to write down all of that which you wish you could change. Are you overweight and unhappy about it? Are you lazy and unhappy about it? Are you unsuccessful and unhappy about it? What are you unhappy about that you could change in order to make you happier? This part should be easy because, luckily, most of us are pretty f*cked up — so you will have more than enough to work with.
Once you have listed a handful of things that you want to change, list them in order of importance. Out of the entire list, which circumstance are you most eager to change? What change do you want to see the most?
Do not bother to consider which of the things listed will be more difficult to change, simply conclude which one is the most important to you that it change and place it on top of the list — this one thing about yourself or the way you live, that you want to change more than anything else, will act as your guiding motivator.
Chances are that this is a “big picture” change such as becoming wealthy, successful or finding yourself someone to love. Chances are that the rest of the list will need to change in order for you to be ready to morph your life towards that motivating change.
Now, reverse your way of thinking and go through your list again, this time considering which of the unhappy factors will be the easiest and quickest to change. Rome wasn’t built in a day and no one starts with picking up supermodels, you need to start with the easy chicks first before you can move onto the elite golden geese.
So pick the smallest and simplest change that you would like to see manifested in your life. I recommend doing so for two main reasons: one, like I have mentioned earlier, the larger, more complex changes tend to require several factors of change before changing them becomes possible; and two, starting with smaller, easier tasks and successfully changing them will give you the confidence necessary to keep on trudging on towards your goal — your main motivating change.
It’s the little victories that we pick up along the way to our final changing-destination that give us the strength to continue. Creating change takes energy — it requires actions. If you want to create change, you must act on that which you want to change. You must be the cause of the change and allow the change to be the effect your action has on that which you are affecting.
If you want change, then you must create action. You must do something. Nothing changes without action, without movement, without energy. The world subscribes to the laws of nature — the more effort you put into changing what you feel you must change, the better the result.
“We are what we repeatedly do. Excellence then, is not an act, but a habit.” – Aristotle
You have pinpointed what makes you unhappy and now you are ready to change it — now you must take action. Consider this task of change: you want to push a boulder up a hillside. What is your best course of action? You know that you will have to exert energy into pushing the large rock up the hill, but do you push it at a slow continuous pace, or do you give it one big heave?
Most people fail to understand what causing significant change requires and go with the latter. If you give the boulder one big push up the hill, before you are able to make it to the highest point of the boulder’s ascent, it will start to roll its way back down the hill.
When this happens, you will either stop it half way from its original climactic height, or you will be run over while it tumbles down the hill. The same goes for creating change. If you want to lose weight and get into shape, don’t starve yourself and hit the gym 5 times a week because you will break and you will binge eat until you either find yourself back at your starting weight or find that you put on an additional 10 pounds. Slow and steady does win the race.
Be patient and remain focused — change requires continuous maintenance. No matter what it is about your life that you wish to change, in essence you will be changing yourself as a whole. You will need to change the way you think and the way that you see both yourself and the world.
Find out what it is that you want to change, figure out what is most important to you and start with what is easiest. Use smaller victories to gain the confidence and momentum to change your life entirely. Most importantly, act. Do not fail to act and do not fail to continue acting.
If you stop moving, the world stops changing. Creating change is not difficult. It is not rocket-science and it is not out of your reach. You must identify, strategize, and attack. Then, you must keep on attacking until you wear down your habits into submission and create the change you are seeking. More importantly than anything else, do not lose hope and do not give up. Without action there is only inaction — stagnancy.
Paul Hudson | Elite.
For more from Paul, follow him on Twitter @MrPaulHudson
