I believe human nature is to naturally resist change and desire stay in our comfort zones. This is surprising, because sometimes, I notice resistance even when I am trying to make a change. When I am not paying attention, I may be unconsciously resisting the change I thought I wanted.
How about you? Do you ever feel this way?
Change is defined as to make or become different. There is always some degree of uncertainty when something is going to be different. So, by definition, change results in uncertainty, which drives discomfort… and nobody likes discomfort. In fact most people will go to extremes to minimize discomfort for themselves and for others.
I recently had an interesting experience. The day I celebrated working for General Electric for 20 years, my division was sold to ABB. I woke up early so I could get my CrossFit workout in before work, and before I left the house I did a quick check of my email, and there I found a “Congratulations on achieving 20 years with GE” email. This was a nice milestone to achieve. Then later that day, by mid-morning all the paperwork was signed and the deal was completed to sell GE Industrial Solutions to ABB.
Overall, I am excited to join ABB. I believe it is a good company and it will give our business and employees opportunities to grow. It is fun to meet new people, and learn about projects they are working on.
What I wasn’t expecting, was the amount of stress I started to feel. The stress really snuck up on me and took me by surprise. Immediately after the sale, there was no change to my job, no change to what my team needed to accomplish, it was really business as usual. Or so I thought… When I started to get comments from my family and friends, I knew I needed to reflect on the amount of stress I was feeling, and I needed do something about it to take care of myself.
What can you do to help yourself embrace change?
- Acknowledge your feelings about the change – try taking some time to journal or find someone to talk with about how you are feeling. Embracing the feelings you are experiencing, can help you feel better about the change.
- Focus on your own self-care – during a time of change is a time to focus on taking care of yourself. Make sure you get enough sleep. Eat a healthy diet. And get some exercise. I particularly like taking extra walks and spending time in nature. Other ideas include meditation, massage, yoga, listening to music, dancing, or spending time with your favorite hobby.
- Break activities down into steps – focusing on smaller steps will make things seem less overwhelming. You will also be able to see progress which will drive momentum. This makes the amount of change seem smaller and easier to handle.
