Making the Most Out of a Big Transition

(This article was originally published on my blog in 2013)

I just moved a couple of weeks ago to a new apartment in a new city, and it is little surprise how a massive change like that can throw you completely outside of your comfort zone.

I don’t know where the closest grocery store is, I can no longer hang around my old cafe, I am quite far from my friends, my normal jogging path has to be replaced, my work routine has destabilized with the move, amongst other things.

At the same token, this transition has worked wonders to destabilize my old habits and patterns and leave a wide open space for me to consciously choose new patterns.

At first when I sat down to review my life as I do every three months or so I thought maybe I should wait until I get into a new routine before I evaluate my present state since everything seemed so unsure, however upon second thought, I realized that this is actually the BEST time for me to establish some new routines and consciously create the new patterns I want to stabilize!

So what did I do?

I did what any normal well-adjusted adult would do.  I ran to Walgreens at 11PM to buy glue sticks, I pulled out some old magazines, and I threw together a Vision Board! Of course, followed by some intense self-coaching.

If you are in a state of transition yourself, are facing a great change in your life, or are thrown out of your comfort zone, take the time to evaluate your present state, and then start taking action right away to choose and stabilize some new more resourceful patterns before you fall into a new routine unconsciously.

If you are unsure of what to do, do something productive. Do something that “the you that you would like to become” would do.

It is so easy at these choice points to say to ourselves, “Oh, I’ll just do the productive thing later” (while fully believing it) and fall back into our old routine. But the truth is, each time you “choose” to do the default/”normal”/easy activity the choice point becomes weaker and weaker until it becomes an automated habit.

In the moment it genuinely feels like this window of opportunity will be open to you later, but the truth is that it will close much faster than you expect.

The first choice point is actually the strongest you will have the opportunity to make the new/better choice.  Make it, even though it may feel uncomfortable and even though it will take a little effort.  When you choose the habit that you would like to have, with each subsequent choice point it becomes easier and easier until it just becomes what you do and even ‘who I am’ without even giving it a second thought.

The choice is yours 😉

Times of transition are never ‘easy’, however, they do provide us with a great possibilities for personal growth.

Half of the battle of making changes in your life is in destabilizing the old patterns, so when the universe throws you a destabilizing event, take advantage of the opportunity as half of the work is already done for you!

NOTE: Since publishing this article I had a deeper realization on this subject.  Read more about that here:  

The Hidden Power of Disrupting Your Routine