Changes
‘Intelligence is the ability to adapt to change’ Stephen Hawking
September heralds change as summer packs away her golden hues, her fading promises of brightness and warmth, rolls up her azure blue gown and shuffles off to move spring along in the southern hemisphere.
I love autumn as much as I love spring, because I welcome change. In autumn, plants and trees slowly let go of what they no longer need: leaves, petals and fruit and become dormant, retaining energy to generate new spring growth.
My apple tree has good quality fruit this year, and I am tormenting myself, waiting just a day or two longer for full ripening, playing fruit roulette with the birds and squirrels. It’s intense and I fear I may crack, pick them all and let them ripen on a window sill.
Fortunately the weather has been kind over the past two weeks - when we were camping in Glencoe and then most recently in the East. On Tuesday the temperature was recorded as 24.5’ when I drove to meet a client who is facing a courageous career change, navigating their way through post-graduate internships and low starting salaries. My client already has an assistant manager role in hospitality and I reminded them to utilise these skills: leadership, organisational change, relationship building and the assertiveness to manage roles and responsibilities.
Change can be difficult for many people, because the process of facing up to what is not working can have consequences that affect others. In order to facilitate the necessary steps required to move forward, an understanding of our inner drivers is crucial: what gives us purpose, passion, joy and remuneration?
One area for development for me has been not to get so easily distracted, and I continue to make progress in this area. Having written about how great I felt about completing paperwork last week, I now dedicate 1-2hrs hour a week to tackle paperwork which is manageable and achievable.
Establishing a routine for wellness, which prioritises my mental and physical wellbeing has been essential as my business continues to grow. Rising early, walking Jilly, swimming in the sea, and catching up with friends are key components and while I don’t always like being tied to a time and place, if it's a fitness class or date night, it’s a priority.
My partner and I went to see Elbow last night and it was just brilliant to have a couple of drinks, sing, dance and immerse ourselves in the best singalong I have ever witnessed from an Edinburgh audience! That kind of change to my weekly routine suits me fine.
Albert Einstein stated that: “If you always do what you always did, you'll always get what you always got.” which can be viewed as a positive reinforcement of good practice or a reminder that if it isn't working, fix it.
How does change affect you? Is it welcome or to be avoided ?
I stepped out of my usual evening routine on Wednesday in order to catch up with a friend who is planning their retirement, and in doing so we saw this fabulous sunset, walked for 1.5 hours and put the world to right.
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