Bracing for Change: Leveraging Cause and Effect in Your Career
Change is an inevitable part of life, but most people have a complex relationship with changes when they occur. When things are changing in the workplace, it often results in a feeling of being powerless or a fear of the unknown.
Over the years, I’ve asked hundreds of people about their relationship with change. A few people love it… but most people avoid change as much as possible.
The reality is that change can bring many positive results, especially when we are the ones initiating it. If you want to leverage yourself to grow your business or advance your career, then learning how to embrace change can be a powerful skill.
The Human Tendency to Resist Change
Your brain is always working to keep you safe, which typically means that your brain is trying to keep you in a familiar state. This evolutionary phenomenon is working to maintain a feeling of predictability and safety – which is often the opposite of change.
Historically, the brain responded to stress as a matter of life or death: our ancestors relied on predictability to avoid life-threatening situations. Now that we live in a world of more physical safety and modern conveniences, the brain still responds to stress in an attempt to keep you in predictable circumstances. Since change can often trigger a stress response for people, it means that your brain will default to resist the change because of this psychological pattern.
Different Perspectives of Change
After talking to so many people about this topic, I’ve come to the conclusion that change is good when you are the one causing it. But resistance generally comes when change is forced upon you.
Understanding this phenomenon can help to shift your perspective when change happens in the future. Next time you are feeling the “effect of change,” look at the situation to see if you can choose to be “at cause” in the situation.
It might seem difficult – and even counterintuitive – in the moment. But learning to work with change for your benefit is exactly the pathway that can lead you to new opportunities. It’s likely that these opportunities will pass by if you are resisting change.
Retraining Your Brain to Embrace Change
No matter what you are doing in your business or career, change is inevitable. The best thing you can do is learn how to embrace the change so that you can use it for your benefit. It can be helpful to work with a business coach who can guide you in uncovering these patterns and rewiring your mindset so that you are better equipped to manage change and even encourage change to move you forward.
Learn more by contacting us at Effective Action Consulting. Reach out to book a complimentary consultation and see how you will benefit from our services.