Stop Waiting for Something BAD to Happen!

It shouldn’t take something bad to happen for you to make changes in your life. Whether it’s a large change or a small one. Tragedy should never be the sole catalyst for change. It would seem as if the majority of people only instigate change when they’re forced to. When something has gone so terribly wrong that there’s no other option but to change. To me, this seems far too late. What if there was a way of preventing the relative tragedy and catching it early? 

I think it’s somewhat inbuilt into us to avoid addressing problems. It’s never convenient or appealing. It’s a hard unforgiving option. You have to become super honest with yourself and confront all sorts of difficult truths. There might not even be a clear answer, it may take some time to figure out the way forward. You have to take an incredibly harsh and honest look at yourself and your direction. Are you happy with where you’re headed? Whether it’s one specific area of your life or your whole direction in general. 

When you detach yourself from your own reality and take a look from an outsider’s viewpoint, it can unlock a whole new perspective. You can begin to take an objective look at how things are going. If you really gauge things you can see them for what they truly are. You can establish if you’re truly happy with your direction and establish if there’s a potentially bad outcome waiting for you on the horizon.

I came up with this metaphor which I think ideally describes what I’m talking about. Think of a bookshelf that’s mounted on a wall. It’s a single shelf with 2 brackets. You stack loads of heavy books onto the shelf and you know deep down that this load is probably too heavy for the shelf. However, you ignore the fact that it’s too heavy as the shelf appears to be holding the weight. You keep an eye on the shelf every day, half expecting something bad to have happened to it. You keep ignoring it even though it’s seriously overloaded.

Eventually, one day you return to the shelf and one of the brackets is leaning to one side making the shelf uneven. You then get another opportunity to address the problem, but instead, you leave it. The shelf seems to be holding even in a weakened state. You know that the likelihood of something bad happening (the shelf collapsing) has increased but yet you still push the issue to one side. One day the shelf collapses. You saw this coming, you could have done something, but you ignored it. Now it’s collapsed. But what did it take with it?

Yes, this turned out to be more of a short story than a metaphor but hopefully, it communicates the point. I also hope it hasn’t made you paranoid about any shelving in your home! When you’re forced to change you’re starting from the weakest and lowest point possible because the worst thing has happened. To rebuild from this point is possible but much harder. 

The most important thing you can do is take an honest look at an area/areas of your life that you’re somewhat concerned with. Really face it. Take an honest look to where you’re most likely headed. Are you happy with that direction? Start to lighten the shelf if possible. Change your course before you hit a disaster. You cannot suppress what you truly love.

If there’s something you’re deeply passionate about it’s usually hardwired into you. Not necessarily from birth, but from experiences. Even if you’re not sure of what it is, there’s potentially a burning passion inside of you. If you suppress it, one day it will come out. The truth of your being will always expose itself. Even if you’re not neglecting a passion, it could be you’re neglecting some other desire you have. The desire to get in shape, to alter your career. The list is endless. If there’s something nagging away inside your head, even if it’s a whisper you have to begin to address it and improve the situation. Before it becomes a raving mad wildly shouting tragedy.