The Challenge of Change and Growth

Last week I challenged my Facebook, Twitter and LinkedIn audiences to stop posting negative things about our current president or anyone else, for that matter, and to start posting more positive things and to take action to move those things that are important to you forward.  I suggested we get off our butts and do something about what concerns us.  Today I want to say that this blog is not going to be a political blog.  This blog is designed to help whoever reads it to become a learning, growing and evolving person.  But I want everyone to know that this will not be a strictly political blog.  Beginning last week I started to post things on my Facebook page that are important to me which are political and I will also continue to post things about personal and professional growth and learning as well.  That's what my work is about and politics is only a side issue to that.  So here are some ideas for you.

Question Yourself and Your Beliefs

What I believe happened when our current president was elected is the nation was kind of in a stupor.  Previously, we had elected this intelligent, wise, ethical and bi-racial president for two terms and we felt proud of ourselves for our sophistication and enlightened thinking.  I believe we thought we were on a roll, but what I know is that the moment we think all is going peachy keen and we are too cool for school, the devil rears his ugly head and all hell breaks loose.  And that's what happened, and it is still happening.  All of a sudden we have this divided country that ends up electing a Neanderthal who wants to go back the 1950's and "Make America Great Again".  Well America is great now and will continue to be great, not by going backward but by going forward.  The truth is all growth is upward, outward and forward and goes down into the depths of our souls, but growth never goes backward.  But in order to go forward we must know and understand our own beliefs and we also must be willing to do what needs to be done to support those beliefs.    So sit down in a quiet moment and list your beliefs and then contemplate what challenges these beliefs bring forward.

Growth Brings Change and Change Brings Challenges 

What I see when I look out into the world is a whole lot of change and much of this change is challenging.  In fact, what I would say is that a lot of us don't actually like the changes we see, but if we are intelligent or as I said in my earlier post, a smart person, we will accept these challenges and deal with them, as a smart person.  One of the things I see with the people I work with is that they often grasp the changes intellectually that are occurring in our world but are reluctant to actually work with these challenges in a personal way.  So I would say, think about the changes you see and the challenges these things bring and ask yourself what you are willing to do to meet these challenges.

Look for the Good the Change Brings and Not Just the Challenge

In the picture above the change is that the sidewalk is cracked and there is this little flower growing out of that crack.  Of course, some might call this a weed, but those of us who look for the good see the beauty of that little flower and hope for more of the same.   We must therefore, look for the good, as well as the challenge in all the changes we see in our world.  One of my hot issues is climate change and environmental wastes and the impact on our world these things bring, but what I also find is that the positive side of this is all the scientific and creative exploration and study that is being done to solve these problems.  The good this brings are all the new programs initiated to solve these problems but it also brings new careers and educational opportunities, just when some of our older careers have died out.

Life is an Ever Growing and Evolving Process - Grow or Stagnate 

Of course we are all going to die eventually, but while you are still alive continue to grow and evolve rather than stagnate and die a slow death.  We must let the changes and challenges we all face inspire us to take on these new challenges - this is the key to living a life will lived.  More on growing and evolving next time.


Blessings, Lorraine