Any transition in life; whether it is changing jobs, starting a business, a health crisis, or leaving a long term relationship; often requires a leap of faith that the new situation will be more satisfying and that it will take us closer to our life goals or passions.
If our new desired state is one that excites us, but it is the practicalities of the transition that are causing the hesitation; then more work may be required to set the structures in place or to learn the skills required to ensure a successful transition.
If the making the move requires you to let go or change some pretty big anchor points in your life – such as your job, where you live or a close relationship – all of which could impact your personal well-being (emotional, physical, spiritual, financial etc.); then indeed you want to be confident the new situation will deliver what you hope it will.
If you have considered all the different potential impacts on your well-being as part of your planning, you will have thought about what you need to put in place to minimise those impacts. Remember though, it’s unrealistic to expect that everything will run exactly to plan, as life has a habit of throwing up other opportunities or challenges which may well provide a new and better direction to take.
The truth is, there are are no guarantees, we can only do our best to prepare. Flexibility will be required to respond to the many challenges and opportunities that are encountered along the way. It will only be by starting the journey itself that the transition to the new desired state can begin. So you just need to start… Start, and trust the work you have done is enough...
What’s the worst that can happen?
What’s the best that can happen?
What would you do if you weren’t so afraid?
Is it a fear of failing?
Maybe failure suits the story you keep telling yourself (or others keep telling you…), and you hold yourself back in keeping with the story of always being the victim of life’s circumstances?
Know the answers to these questions and keep your focus on the best that can happen. Keeping positive and surrounding yourself with like-minded people will help support you on your journey.
While it’s an old saying, and often seen as a cliché: “One door must close before another can open”. Being busy all the time and making sure that your diary is always full, provides no opportunity for serendipity to arise. Expecting that things will change, and expecting that change will offer new opportunities to succeed allows a creative energy to propel you towards better outcomes. Taking calculated risks and learning from mistakes, are all about embracing change to ensure you aren’t left behind in situations that no longer serve you.
“Life is no straight and easy corridor along
which we travel free and unhampered,
but a maze of passages,
through which we must seek our way,
lost and confused, now and again
checked in a blind alley.
But always, if we have faith,
a door will open for us,
not perhaps one that we ourselves
would ever have thought of,
but one that will ultimately
prove good for us.”
A. J. Cronin