Wealth Financial Life Insurance Services
Phone : (858) 755-7600
| Purpose and Renewal in Life Transitions |
| How to Manage Your Transition |
By Contributing Author, Eve Siegel, M.S., CPCC, ACC, CMT When I was recently re-reading William Bridges’ seminal book, Transitions, what struck me in the first chapter called “The Need for Change” is the organicity of transitions. As he says, they happen naturally in all living creatures: “Throughout nature, growth involves periodic accelerations and transformations. Things go slowly for a time and nothing seems to change-- until suddenly the eggshell cracks, the branch blossoms . . . the hibernation begins. With us . . . the functions of transition times are the same. They are key times in the natural process of self-renewal. I’m imagining what it would be like if we considered transitions as “key times in our natural process of self-renewal.” What if we experienced them not just as changes that felt chaotic (which they certainly can!), but also as times to feel ourselves opening to what is alive and purposeful? Some BIG transitions such as being born, getting married, having a child, losing a major person in your life, and dying are inherently powerful experiences. Each can cause tremendous fear and distress-- and also, tap into the power within yourself to expand into other levels of physical, emotional, and/or spiritual awareness. Though most transitions seem comparatively less weighty-- such as a move to another place, shifting to a new career, or asking for flex-time to be more with your children-- they can feel just as profoundly unsettling, like being caught in a storm at sea, where you feel yourself losing your footing and visibly shaken about the outcome. Peter Levine, PhD and author of Waking the Tiger, suggests that the complex human brain can cause body-based and emotional resistances to change-- which by definition, rocks your boat and shakes you up. We then find it hard to accept that the transitions behind them can be a “natural” part of our own “self-renewal”-- even though moving into new ways of working, relating, and integrating different aspects of your life are actually manifestations of lives that are rich and evolving. There are many times, however, when the appearance of the transitions you face may not look or feel natural or renewing at all. What is "organic" and purposeful, however, is the unfolding within yourself of the strength and capacity to do what you did not know you could to meet the challenges within these periods of change. An example is a woman who wrote me recently about being abandoned by her husband and having to raise two young children on her own. Her purpose became creating a family with her children that was free of the bitterness and anger she felt towards her ex-husband, and her joy was that she was able to do so and lead a happier life than she’s had before this painful transition. Just like this woman, you find can find meaning and direction in what you have to learn and do to create new ways of living that feel right for you. Even if the transitions themselves seem overwhelming, what is important is that which evolves in you as part of an unfolding of latent capabilities that were there but unrecognized-- like young birds learning to fly. As a career and life coach who has worked with many people managing significant changes, it’s clear to me that transitional periods can feel less chaotic and more valuable if they’re experienced as part of a natural flow towards self-renewal and living with purpose. To stay fulfilled, resourced and balanced as you move forward in life, it’s vital to stay mindful of the powerful need and movement within yourself to unfold into your full potential.
Eve Siegel, M.S., CPCC, ACC, CMT, is a certified life coach in the San Francisco Bay Area who helps professionals get off the treadmill and create positive changes in their careers and personal lives with clarity, confidence, and passion! Individual sessions in office or by phone worldwide. Classes and presentations on creating career transitions and managing life balance issues. To download her free reports on “Creating Meaningful Career Change from Challenge!” and “Living Fulfilled-- Finding Time for What Matters Most,” visit her website, http://www.kailaslifecoaching.com
|
