“The only thing we know about the future is that it will be different.” – Peter F. Drucker
Intellectually we know that change is an inevitable part of life. We also know that many changes are actually for the better. But emotionally, it often scares us to death. Human beings are creatures of habit. We feel comfortable with what we know. Anything that suggests the unknown can be viewed as a threat.
When clients tell me that they want to change, but can’t, I reframe it as you want to change, but aren’t. While there are many circumstances in our life that are out of our control, how we react to them is not. It is actually one of the few things in which we do have true autonomy.
Embracing choice and control over our reactions can be very empowering. That doesn’t mean it’s easy. But if we look at change not just as an external process happening to us but as an internal process happening within us, we may find that we have more control over our future than we think.
The true enemy of personal growth is fear, not a lack of innate ability. People tend to be more capable than they give themselves credit for. But it takes a shift in thinking from one of being a victim to being our own master of how we think, feel, and behave.