RAF Inspired: Creatures of Habit Need Change, Too

Creatures of Habit Need Change, Too
By Kelly Chapman
“Change is the only constant.” I have heard this statement before but had no idea what it meant. I only knew that it made me shudder at the thought of “constant change” being real. Because, my friends, I am a creature of habit. I used to think this was unique, but more and more, I find it to be the norm. Change is difficult for everyone, yet it’s inevitable and necessary for growth.

I went to a sales conference recently and the guest speaker who kicked off the event talked about change. I felt like he was speaking to me. It looked like he was staring directly at me. Freaky but true. He said, “No one wants change, yet everyone wants things to get better.” I nodded profusely and silently begged him to continue and provide words of wisdom for how to get improvement with minimal change. Unfortunately, he said this wasn’t possible. “Growth and success require change, and change is almost always difficult and uncomfortable.” I took comfort in knowing that I was not alone in my creature of habit status.

After that speech, I thought about my recent career change and wondered, “Did I change paths too dramatically? Could I have created change in the place and career that I loved versus making drastic changes?” At the time, I thought I needed something very different to grow and stretch my wings. But now, I found I missed the old familiar – not everything, but the parts that I used to love and never wanted to give up. The people and the parts of my day that inspired me and made me better.

It was only days later that my past came back – not to haunt me – but to tap me on the shoulder and tell me the old familiar missed me even more than I did it, and to offer a chance to do something similar to what I had been doing, but with enough change to evolve, grow, and be better. And, as I enter my next adventure, it will be a familiar place, filled with new challenges. The perfect blend of old and new for a creature of habit like me. So, I can now honestly say that I am inspired by change — as uncomfortable as it can be.

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