Early on in life, we were given structure and found content within the routine of it. We would wake up on the weekdays, go to school, talk with friends, go home, do homework, watch TV, and on the weekends, go and hang out. This structure aptly described the first 18 years of our life. Then, we were thrust into the real world and shocked out of our routine. We found that structure was no longer given to us. We must define it.
Some people, when presented with this, become frightened at the newfound responsibility placed upon them and they immediately turn and cling to any type of structure to fill the void, even if that structure is not up to par with what they want. They cling to the first job that’s available to them, even though it’s not exactly the kind they want. They cling to the same friends, to the same restaurants, to the same habits, all in an attempt to recreate the illusion of safety that they once had in their structured lives.
We have been conditioned from day one to equate structure as given to those around us as “safe”, when in reality it’s quite the opposite. Relish the opportunity to create your own structure of life, the way you see it, not the way others see it for you, for if you start depending on others for structure, you will not be happy about it.
Here is where the power you so desperately want to avoid tapping into comes into play. The power to change. Embrace it, for change is growth. Change is life. It is happening all around us. Change gives us that much needed catalyst to get a grip on our own lives and so often we fail to initiate it that we only realize its immense power when it is cast upon us. Only then do we realize that change brings along with it, a whole host of benefits, possibilities, and opportunities that we never knew existed.
So when the girlfriend leaves you, when the boss fires you, when the friends abandon you, do not see this as something woeful, but a sign that the structure you are so depending on is based on those around you, not within you. For to define the structure of your life is the ultimate freedom, and by doing so you will show other people that there is another path, there is another way.
Change forces us to reexamine ourselves, to take a closer look and see just what we are made up of. The plethora of opportunities, experiences, and knowledge that abound from change serve you in every way imaginable. Many people have gone to achieve great things because of this great force. Change is that catalyst we need to wake ourselves up, to see that the structure we are depending on is as brittle as old chalk.
So for those of you striking out on your own journey, your own path, your own dreams and you see those who have given up their power to change, who have let others define the structure in which they live in, pity them. Do not feel down when they ridicule you for choosing to change through defining your own structure because the structure you are building is much more solid, much more concrete, and will last much longer as it has been built with your own hands.
Life often gives us a second chance by throwing a wrench in our daily routine to instigate a radical change and by learning to recognize and anticipate it, you reap the full benefits from it, rather than wallow and be negatively affected by it.
Fortune favors those who have the courage to initiate change rather than to wait for forces to change their circumstances.
The courage to let go of routine and to initiate change is within each and every one of us, but knowing the benefits of change can lead to that courage.
Anticipate it, enjoy it, initiate it, for change is the ultimate stimulant to help you stop sleeping through what is known as this precious gift called life.
