Experiment 1-2013: To change or not to change

Spring. Another applied or imposed experiment in transformation.

There has been some considerable time since my last post. Those of you who I know, have worked with, or follow me professionally—know that the last almost three years have been a time of incredible change both personally and professionally. The move to Cincinnati and accepting a position with a government research institute  were new chapters for a book in progress. The idea of a book came at an earlier chapter of great change when I divorced, started studying cognitive preference, and decided to go to grad school. I’ve seen a pattern of cycles in, not only my life, but the lives of friends, family, and clients. At those times, key aspects of life come into question—relationships, work, health. Even things that have worked well in the past become irrelevant if, they too, do not squeeze through the eye of transition to a new time.

As a teacher of change management, each experience has been been fodder for the book — “my life as a lab.” I’ve even adopted the blog environment as a place to flesh out ideas and write sections that I plan to eventually knit into the book. One of my own adaptations to technology.

What’s the point? Finding meaning. We all search for it—through some form of mysticism or science, or through our own efforts. To choose to look at change as an experiment, a study, a learning experience — to take it from a painful inevitability of surviving life to an opportunity for growth, adventure, or wild possibility. Transformation. Isn’t transformation what we all look and long for? Life begins with the expectation that transformation is a natural process. And some transformations are natural and unchangeable — like age. Somewhere in our    mental maturing, we realize that natural transformation is not all desirable. For those who have abdicated responsibility for piloting their own ship, a moment of awakening brings panic. The entitled react with bitter disappointment and invest in staying that way. Those with or aspiring to independent spirit and a sense of adventure transcend fear, recognize, and embrace the opportunity before them.

And so the question is: To change or not to change? I choose to take pruning tools and wire in hand and approach life like a bonsai. Directing wayward limbs to bend in a way that harmonizes with where all your other limbs are headed. Trimming off unwanted growth. Painful. Perhaps, but even the cure can be beautiful. Molding life into a meaningful design and a reference for meditation.