TRANSITION! Such a simple word, but complex in nature, with life changing power. Think of how many transitions you have already experienced in your life, and you can begin to imagine those that are yet to come.
Good Evening, I hope you had a great weekend and are energized by the possibilities of the week ahead! I had an interesting and thoughtful few days that served to direct much of my reading. The week gave me pause to consider the transitions that have impacted my life of late.
First there is that whole retirement thing. I never realized that my identity was so tied to my career. Earlier in the week, I was introduced to someone who, after shaking my hand said, “Oh, you’re that guy that was at Mifflin forever!” Yep, that was me! Then there is that transition with turning 65. I no longer feel any guilt when ordering from the senior menu, I’m advising all the healthcare people that Medicare is now the coverage of choice, and most important, I can play from the gold tees in golf tournaments! Finally there was the knee injury and realizing that indeed, I am aging, and the body cannot do what it once did (which was reinforced by the surgeon telling me that my running days are over unless I want a new knee). These are just a few of my personal transitions, and like you, I’m wrestling with the presidential transition and the events that have transpired since President Trump’s inauguration.
What I’ve come to realize, and what my readings have reinforced, is that nothing is accomplished by focusing on transition in and of itself. What is more important are the associated choices we make in dealing with it! In essence, do we choose to let the event control us, or do we take actions that let the event serve a purpose!
In his article, You Have the Power to Dramatically Improve Your Life, positive-thinking guru, Zig Ziglar, challenges us with a simple statement, “The choice is yours!”
Blogger Ron Culbertson, considers transition from a unique perspective, the day he sold his motorcycle. In his piece, Transitions: The Last Ride, he lets us feel the emotions of a man parting with what was an important part of his life. He leaves us with a powerful thought, “If you can embrace your particular transitions for what they are, a chapter in your book of life, then I suspect you’ll be able to ride on to your new destinations with a bit more ease.”
Finally, we will end on the theme of “Letting Go!” Sometimes transition brings us to the realization that we just have to let go and move on. Believe me, this is easier said than done! Many years ago, those wonderful British philosophers, The Rolling Stones, reminded us “You Can’t Always Get What You Want, But Sometimes You Get What You Need” . British blogger Varun Bhanot takes that idea as he shares his post, “Sometimes We Just Have to Let Go and Let Life Happen”. This isn’t to say that we simply throw in the towel and accept things, rather he gives us a challenge , “We should strive for what we believe we can achieve and hold a vision of what we want in our minds.”
No one ever said it was going to be easy. Perhaps as Culbertson says, “People who are most successful at managing transitions are the ones who see them for what they are — mileposts on the road of our existence.”
Have a great week and Embrace the Challenge,