Personal Change

5 Ways to Change Your Mind About Change

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Change is inevitable. No matter what you do, you will, at some point (and probably at many points) experience change. Whether it’s good or bad, you will have to deal with it and, even when change is a good thing, you might find it difficult to accept it.

Personally, I struggle with change. Even good change can be tricky for me to deal with. For example, about six months ago I left my job to focus on my site, PositivelyPresent.com, full time. I initiated this change—and was thrilled about it—but it was still a struggle to get used to the idea that I would be in control of my own business.

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Welcoming Change

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welcoming change

Monique sent us a kaleidoscope. But it wasn’t the beautiful, smoothly-sanded wood or the delicate glass end piece that moved us. It was the note in the box.

Dear Ruth and Bobbi, Looking through a kaleidoscope, I find that I love the scene in front of me. It’s so intricate and beautiful, I just want to look at it forever. But eventually, I have to turn the glass. The tiny pieces inside jumble around and, for an instant, there is chaos. Yet soon a new, even more exquisite pattern emerges. One I would not have seen if I had not turned the kaleidoscope. I send you this to remind you that your current journey is much like the turning of the glass: A new, beautiful picture is coming into view.

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Perception of a Changing World. My Journey to a Better Life.

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I was twenty-seven years old when I saw a glimpse of how I would perceive the world in the future. Of course I didn’t realize it at the time, but the events that would follow from that time in my life, would alter my views and beliefs forever.

I went on an inner journey to discover what it was that I should do with my life. I had felt lost most of my life. I never really wanted a regular job. I didn’t like the idea of working until I was 70 so I could “retire”. Heck, I didn’t like the idea of working period. I wanted something more with my life. I wanted meaning. To do something that aligned with my non-conformist ways of how I perceived the world.

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How I Quit My Job, Moved to a Foreign Country, and Became a Ninja

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how i became a ninja

Sometimes people say strange things, odd things, things that make you do a double take. Do you ever think about quitting your job, moving to a far away land, and pursuing some crazy dream? Me too, a few times.

Sorry, I’m being melodramatic. Let me rephrase that. It crossed my mind about a thousand times. Notice the past tense. So I did it. I quit my job, I moved to Japan, I am pursuing my childhood dream: I’m trying to become a ninja. Today I want to share my story in hopes of inspiring and encouraging you to follow your dreams.

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Four and a Half Years of Change … and a Goodbye

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a goodbye

It’s well over four years since I first wrote a post for The Change Blog … and during that time, my own life has changed dramatically. Today is also a goodbye (and you’ll understand why when you get to the end of this post).

Today is also a goodbye (and you’ll understand why when you get to the end of this post). Thanks for being part of my journey – and I hope that you’ll find something in my experiences that gives you new inspiration or motivation with your own life. Here are the past four and a half years in my life … and what I learned from them

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8 Teachers for Navigating Change

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As a recovering type A personality, I wish control worked. And it does, sometimes. But there’s always at least one area of life that cannot be tamed. You’re happily married but have health issues. Or you’re financially stable but struggling with fertility. You have fulfilling work but no life partner. Nothing ever goes our way entirely, and that can become a great doorway for transformation.

The heart of transformation involves facing change. Here, change makes us feel vulnerable because it means engaging new unknowns. We’ve been taught to rely on control to deal with uncertainty. The challenge is that control boxes us into viewing reality as good versus bad. So if a change arrives that fits into our perception about what life should look like, we’re happy. But what happens if a change arrives that doesn’t fit into our box? Either we can’t recognize it or we push it away (hello, denial). And what if life throws us a curveball? Then the box crumbles and we’re left feeling overwhelmed.

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Getting Comfortable With the Uncomfortable: My Journey to Being Who I Always Wanted to Be

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my journey

I’m not old by any means but one thing I have learned from my 31 years and 8 months in this world is that each of us is unique. There is not one single person out there that looks like me, thinks like me, has the same circumstances as me, or the same thought process as me. So it doesn’t really make much sense to follow the same life course as anyone else.

Much like there is no one size fits all approach to fitness and nutrition, there is no one size fits all approach to how you should live your life. This is the story of my journey to being who I always wanted to be. It includes why I quit my job, sold my car and gave away $45,000. I hope you enjoy.

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5 Ways Working Abroad Helped Me Grow

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working abroad

Can you pinpoint the pivotal time in your life when you became an adult? For me, it was when I finally left my home to go traveling.

I took a working holiday in New Zealand for six months and while I was there I met my English boyfriend and lived in England with him for 14 months. During these 20 months of travel I grew more than I ever could have if I had stayed in Canada.

When I left Canada at the age of 22 I was confused and conflicted. I wondered what my future would bring and I had only a slight inkling that there was so much more to see and do in the great big world out there. When I returned to Canada at age 24 after having worked and lived abroad in New Zealand and England for two years I was a strong and confident adult with a plan for my future. Here are five of the ways that working abroad helped me to grow up:

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How to Use Lucid Dreaming As a Catalyst For Personal Change

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lucid dream

In today’s society, everyone is trying to either make more money, lose a few pounds around the waist, or simply just get ahead of the pack. It seems we’re always striving for some sort of new goal. But in many cases, what is lacking is one vital element…the inner confidence to do it.

In the real world, we face numerous obstacles that can set us back from reaching our goals, our dreams, and our most cherished desires in life. There is never a shortage of mental or physical hurdles that tend to stand in our way.

But what if you could change your level of confidence from the inside out, through your dreams?

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Let’s Talk About Change

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talk about change

Have you ever been excited about making a change in your life … only to feel completely deflated by someone’s reaction?

Or have you ever faced a difficult change … and had it made worse by someone else’s reaction?

The people around us – friends, family, colleagues – aren’t always as supportive as we might wish, especially in times of change. They might offer lots of advice – you know they mean well, but it drives you crazy. They might be very negative about the change, telling you it’ll never work out – and that’s often the last thing you need.

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