Change can be difficult. But change is also the only way to progress. 

Change brings us lessons and opportunities. 

The changes that we experience in the outside world have an effect on our inner lives as well.

We can choose how we respond to them and it is up to us to make the most of them. 

In a New Year’s address from 1966, Dr. George King said:

“I think that it’s going to be a very significant year, but you know, we have to go so far to meet opportunity. It isn’t opportunity itself, which brings a spiritual renaissance; it’s how you use it. The change must take place within you, in order that you make the best of any opportunity which is given to you. I think this is very important.”

It is important to have a positive mindset – to see change as an opportunity for growth and not something to be afraid of. When we have a positive attitude like this, we are more likely to recognize opportunities when they arise. 

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I used to work in change management. This meant that when my company had a change coming, perhaps a new software or a new process, it was my job to prepare people for this change. 

We’re not talking about deep philosophical changes here involving profound moral or ethical dilemmas. These were just routine changes in business processes. But even in this context, change was still very difficult for some. 

Most people responded in one of three ways.

Firstly, there was always a small group that accepted the change readily. 

Secondly, there was a much larger group that needed time to understand and feel comfortable with the change before they got on board. 

Then there was a third small group that would resist the change as much as possible. They would only make the change once it was virtually forced upon them. 

I found that when I talked to the people in this last group they seemed the most unhappy. They weren’t just unhappy about the new process, they were unhappy with their jobs, relationships, their personal life and so on. They kind of feared change. 

I found that the best way to help these people was to try and dispel their fear of the particular change. 
Most things are difficult before they are easy. When the people in this third group could understand the change more clearly and see how it could benefit them, they felt better about it. Their mindset would change. 

The people in the first group weren’t afraid of the change to begin with. They had a more positive attitude towards it so were able to adapt more easily.

Something you can try

Dr. King stated in an address:

“If you train your subconscious mind always to impress positive thoughts, it will impress positive thoughts. And the only way you can do that is by the conscious mind training the subconscious mind and it will begin to manifest within you.”

In other words, if you want to think more positively, you have to do this consciously. 

Just for the next two weeks, let’s try and train our minds to have more positive thoughts. Dr. King gives some excellent insights into how to do this in his classic lecture “Man’s Mind.” The entire audio is available for free on Aetherius Cloud as a trial, even without signing up for a plan. 

Let me know what you think.