Three Lessons on Change

Over the weekend, I went for a hike. Though my brain doesn’t know exactly what’s happening, my soul and my body are reaping benefits from being out in the woods.

This particular hike was a 3-mile loop shared by both hikers and mountain bikers. Some parts were easy for me, others took a little more out of me. Either way, it felt good to be out there.

As I later reflected on my time in the woods, I could see several similarities between my hike and the journey we take when navigating change. Here are three lessons on change that stood out for me.

You must stay present

I normally carry my noise-canceling AirPods for hikes so I can walk in a cocoon of silence. But I accidentally left them at home this time. Turns out this was a good thing.

I needed to stay fully present to what was happening around me so I could hear as the bikes were approaching. Had I been wearing my headphones I have no doubt I would have missed more than one biker coming at me.

It’s easy to want to check out, especially when things are hard and uncomfortable. Change IS going to throw you into uncertainty. Checking out only delays the process; it doesn’t make the hard thing go away.

My experience with change has taught me that the path forward reveals itself no more than one or two steps at a time. If you aren’t present, you will lose sight of where you’re going and end up more lost than when you started the journey. Staying present when moving through change is the only way forward.

Avoid losing focus

At one point during my hike, I noticed two women walking on a trail that ran almost parallel to the one I was walking. I was not 100% familiar with the trail but thinking about the map I had looked at previously, I was certain there was no other trail nearby.

For several feet, I kept thinking, “what trail are y’all on?”. I was so focused on where they were that I missed that my trail was curving. I almost walked straight into a tree because I was more focused on their path than my own.

This thing we do of comparing or worrying about what others are doing instead of what we are supposed to be doing will trip you up every time. When moving through change, you have to stay focused on YOUR lane.

Stay in your lane! Don’t worry about what others are or aren’t doing. Look at what you need to be doing. After all, more often than not, the change you’re navigating has you in unfamiliar territory. You’ve got to watch where you’re going so you don’t end up lost or confused.

There will be interruptions

It was a beautiful day in the Carolinas, and there were a lot of people out on the trail with me. Most of those were mountain bikers. Multiple times throughout my hike, I had to stop and step off the trail so the bikers could get past.

There will be interruptions on your change journey. Times when things don’t go as planned. Times you’re left wondering what is actually happening in your life at the moment. These interruptions and disruptions are part of the journey. They’re part of the way forward.

It’s annoying, frustrating, inconvenient, and sometimes downright anger-inducing. Receive it all as part of the process. Trust that the Universe/the Divine/Spirit is conspiring FOR you. All the stops and starts, all the unexpected diversions, ALL of it is moving you to where you need to be.

Wherever you are in your change journey, may these lessons on change remind you that even if you can’t see it, you are exactly where you’re supposed to be moving in the direction you’re supposed to be moving. Trust this to be true.

From my heart to yours,

P.S: If you’re facing a change and feeling unsure how to navigate all the uncertain, fear and anxiety let’s talk. Schedule a complimentary call with me, where we can explore what support would look like for you. Click here to schedule your call.