Recently, I read that the iconic smell of the seaside – that salty, sulfurous smell you’re imagining right now, taking you back in your memory to sitting in the warm sand, hearing the waves crash in the surf – comes from the gas emitted by bacteria feeding on the natural sunscreen created by plankton that’ve died on the beach. So, that wonderful smell associated with vacation and oceanic vistas is, essentially, bacterial farts.
But beyond this delightfully dichotomous cause-and-effect story, it got me thinking about change. More specifically, I thought of the effects of change. Not surprisingly, humans, for the most part, are change-averse. Sometimes that change is for the better, sometimes not, though who can really say in the long-term holistic sense which is which? But people like seeing what’s coming at them; they like it when things fit categorically where they belong; they like a sense of control and knowing. Change upends all that, even when you’re the catalyst.
However, in retrospect, how often did you really see coming what actually came? How often do things/people/events really stay in their lane, so to speak? How much are we really in control of and what do we actually know given the incredible limitations of our own perspectives?
What happens if we simply let go and embrace change?
I don’t mean reach out and give it a big, great hug. And I certainly don’t mean to say “yes” to everything. I simply mean: what if, when faced with change (particularly unforeseen), you acknowledge it, see the gift in it (whatever that may be), and move ahead accordingly? Let me break that down for a moment.
Step 1: Change! Boom! There it is out of nowhere. Flat tire. Dropped client. Rainy forecast. Whatever.
Step 2: Without judgement or being attached to any specific outcome, just acknowledge what has happened. You have a flat tire. Your client ended your working relationship. It’s going to rain today. Huh, okay.
Step 3: See what gift there is from this. It may be hard to find at first, but I promise there is one. You get to finally test out that tire-changing skill your dad taught you when you got your first car. Your schedule has opened up for a new client who will be a better fit. Your outdoor picnic with kite-flying has turned into an indoor movie screening with cuddling on the couch.
Step 4: Action! Something happened. It’s here. Time ticks on. Now what? Get out that spare tire, jack, and impress your wife. Pursue your ideal client through the relationships you’ve forged and get excited about starting something new with someone who fulfills you. Lay out the food, put on Netflix, dim the lights, fold out a blanket, and cuddle to the sound of rain hitting against the window as the opening credits to your favorite movie flash across the TV.
The point here is not to fight the inevitability of change, but to embrace it. There is no normal, ideal path interrupted by spontaneous change. The spontaneous change is normal!
And when your energy stops going into pushing against an immovable rock and starts going into chiseling that rock into a sculpture, embrace the new possibilities that couldn’t have existed before this moment! Sometimes microscopic sunscreen-digested farts can take us back to the fondest childhood memories of our lives…if we let them.
But beyond this delightfully dichotomous cause-and-effect story, it got me thinking about change. More specifically, I thought of the effects of change. Not surprisingly, humans, for the most part, are change-averse. Sometimes that change is for the better, sometimes not, though who can really say in the long-term holistic sense which is which? But people like seeing what’s coming at them; they like it when things fit categorically where they belong; they like a sense of control and knowing. Change upends all that, even when you’re the catalyst.
However, in retrospect, how often did you really see coming what actually came? How often do things/people/events really stay in their lane, so to speak? How much are we really in control of and what do we actually know given the incredible limitations of our own perspectives?
What happens if we simply let go and embrace change?
I don’t mean reach out and give it a big, great hug. And I certainly don’t mean to say “yes” to everything. I simply mean: what if, when faced with change (particularly unforeseen), you acknowledge it, see the gift in it (whatever that may be), and move ahead accordingly? Let me break that down for a moment.
Step 1: Change! Boom! There it is out of nowhere. Flat tire. Dropped client. Rainy forecast. Whatever.
Step 2: Without judgement or being attached to any specific outcome, just acknowledge what has happened. You have a flat tire. Your client ended your working relationship. It’s going to rain today. Huh, okay.
Step 3: See what gift there is from this. It may be hard to find at first, but I promise there is one. You get to finally test out that tire-changing skill your dad taught you when you got your first car. Your schedule has opened up for a new client who will be a better fit. Your outdoor picnic with kite-flying has turned into an indoor movie screening with cuddling on the couch.
Step 4: Action! Something happened. It’s here. Time ticks on. Now what? Get out that spare tire, jack, and impress your wife. Pursue your ideal client through the relationships you’ve forged and get excited about starting something new with someone who fulfills you. Lay out the food, put on Netflix, dim the lights, fold out a blanket, and cuddle to the sound of rain hitting against the window as the opening credits to your favorite movie flash across the TV.
The point here is not to fight the inevitability of change, but to embrace it. There is no normal, ideal path interrupted by spontaneous change. The spontaneous change is normal!
And when your energy stops going into pushing against an immovable rock and starts going into chiseling that rock into a sculpture, embrace the new possibilities that couldn’t have existed before this moment! Sometimes microscopic sunscreen-digested farts can take us back to the fondest childhood memories of our lives…if we let them.