you’ll know when you’re ready

I recorded an awesome podcast yesterday that should be out in a few weeks. One of the areas we discussed that has stayed with me since the recording is how people can’t be forced to make changes until they are ready–the conversation was about the hidden forces behind life planning.

What brought us to this idea was a discussion about whether or not everyone is ready to embark on the life planning process; I don’t believe everyone is ready, although everyone can benefit from it. As much as I believe in, have benefited from, and have seen others change their lives from the life planning process, it is a process that an individual or couple must be spiritually, mentally, and emotionally ready for because it requires them to look within and be honest with their Selves about who they are, what they value, and what they want.

Unfortunately, I don’t think most people know who they really are, what they value, and what they want in their lives—they might think they do, but with some introspection, they’ll discover that they are living by someone else’s definitions. And, not everyone will want to look beyond the comfort of their status quo, and that is okay…in time, though, I think that may change, which is why we can’t force anyone to enter into life planning or make any changes until they are ready.

This is true in more areas than just life planning.

You might be wondering how you’ll know when you’re ready to change (or even possibly go through the life planning process), and all I can tell you is that you will know—it’s one of those “feeling” things. There’s a quote about change that I’ve always appreciated that goes something along the lines of, “change will happen when the pain of NOT changing is greater than the pain of change.” That “pain” is an internal feeling and not always physical—it can be a feeling of frustration, sadness, discontentment, or even excitement about what the change holds for you; no one else can tell you because they can’t feel what you are feeling.

In some instances, you might also experience a physical event, like burnout, a health scare, or being laid off, that will push you toward finding your truths, which are all held within YOU, but I think the physical experiences come after you’ve ignored the silent cues along the way; this is a topic for another note, but I think when the Universe is trying to tell or teach you something and you ignore it, it turns up the volume in the intensity of its communication until you finally receive it–and sometimes that is a major event.

Those of us who want to help others must remember that we can’t force them and can only be there for them when they are ready.

For everyone else, if you’re not sure whether change is needed, you’ll know when you’re ready.

See you tomorrow and keep pursuing,

JC