Tag: Mindfulness

Bring the Change

There is a story of a Bus driver who always drove the same route. Most of his passengers were regulars and well known to the Bus driver. There was a passenger who had the habit of paying for his fare with Bank notes and requesting for his change. One day, the passenger again paid for his fare with Bank notes and requested for his change. This time, the Bus driver had had enough. He vented out his frustration and exclaimed – “You cannot always demand change, sometimes you have to bring the change!”.

We all have one or two things we would like to see change. Things that can be made better, easier or even fairer. Sometimes we can fully articulate what that change should be and the associated benefits that will accompany the change. Other times, all we know is that the current situation is not good enough- It simply is not working for us and in some cases for others as well.

As with most things in life, not all changes are within our control. Some are external to us, requiring others to action for the change to happen or for it to be successful.

While we may be unable to change everything, or even change a lot, we will have opportunities to make changes, no matter how little to some things. There will be things within our control that we can change. We can change our outlook to life, looking out for positives. We can change the way we view disappointments that come our way, using them as stepping stones for the next stage. We can be the friendly neighbour, the attentive friend, the diligent employee, the empathetic employer. We can make a change no matter how small.

Expecting a change is not enough, sometimes we have to bring the change!

Try again tomorrow

What if you knew what you wanted and had gone for it?

It is common knowledge for many that if you want something, you go for it. You put the resources, the time and effort into it to make it work. So, what if after you have put all of that in, you still don’t get the result that you had hoped for? You have tried but things have not quite turned out as expected, or they have turned out to be what you would call an absolute disaster? You have put the money into that investment, time into that relationship, effort into that job, you have worked extremely hard trying to build… but it’s all come crashing down!

This crashing down, falling apart, can lead to a deep sense of loss, of devastation, of despair. Many at this point may lose heart and some may even become a shadow of their former self. The dream has been snatched! It’s not going well!

I have learnt that in life, even with the rightest of all motives, the best of all intentions, the greatest of all endeavours, not all situations will go as planned or as expected. The results, the timings may be different from what we had anticipated or wanted. While we may not be able to change all situations to suit our expectations, we may be able to change how we view these experiences.

We can try to change what we do next, how we take it on from there. We can learn the lessons from what has not worked today and use them for when we try again tomorrow.

If it hasn’t worked today, give it another go, try again tomorrow!

Nothing wrong with normal

What a year 2020 has been!

For most of us in many parts of the world, 2020 has been a year like no other. The coronavirus pandemic has resulted in so many changes including to the way we live our lives. It has had some impacts on what we do, how we do it, who we meet, where we meet, where we go, who we go with, how we work, where we work.

One thing this year has taught me is that I may have previously taken ‘normal’ for granted. Many of the things that would have previously been referred to as normal, ordinary, not worthy of celebrating….even boring are now very much missed! it was normal to spend time with friends and family, to work alongside colleagues, to go out for drinks and meals, to go out in groups to watch movies, meet at the park, visit places to mention a few.

Not so much anymore! There is now some disruption or another to what had previously been perceived normal. The old normal days are missed and are longed back for. While I long for those days, I am learning to pause and appreciate what is left available to me. To embrace the new normal and to look forward to better days ahead… days to be celebrated, days that will not too long afterwards become normal, but with what I now know should not be treated as such!