The Dangers of Change

I am, of course constantly meeting and hearing from people who are working to change their life…and am in the fortunate position to be able to help.

I’m often particularly struck by the number of people who are working hard to escape from situations which many would consider great good fortune.

Examples that come to mind include:

• G, who holds a senior position in a well known international financial organisation, earning huge money, enabling her to have a London home and several holidays a year. BUT, feels unfulfilled….wants to be a teacher….and her great salary and comfortable lifestyle are holding her back….as she described, like golden handcuffs!
• B, acknowledged as an expert in his field in Australia and worldwide. Commands great respect and an income most of us can only dream of, has created a ‘dream lifestyle’ from humble beginnings, BUT; his wife is tired of living with a stressed out and angry version of the man she married, his children don’t know him…and he’s unhappy most of the time.
• S, has no financial worries, doesn’t need to work, mixes with the European jet set has high profile boyfriends who are the envy of her friends, looks amazing BUT; cannot look in a mirror without crying….and doesn’t believe that she’ll ever be loved.

I could go on and on listing couples and individuals who have achieved what they thought were their dreams….money, glamour, power and sometimes fame and who are desperately unhappy.

Is it the fault of the media who constantly offer visions of ‘living the dream’ which they encourage us to aspire to?  I doubt it.

While it’s tempting to blame a faceless entity for our ills, the truth is usually nearer home, and can only be found through self exploration and taking responsibility for what we find when we face ourselves.

Many of us have fallen into the trap of seeking to impress or please, to be seen to be successful in order to gain approval and acceptance.  Can we escape our own ‘golden handcuffs’?  Yes, once we realise that we alone hold the key.

How?  I think that Shakespeare sums it up well in the passage beginning; “This above else to thine own self be true”.

The rest will follow.

Talk soon, Chrissy.