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Change
Is Necessary
By Mark Cole
Remember
the Peanuts cartoon with Snoopy, Charlie Brown and all his
friends?
American
cartoonist Charles M. Schulz wrote and illustrated the famous series which
featured a group of young children and one memorable dog.
In the
strips, there were rarely any adults seen or heard, but the life lessons were
no less power-packed!
In one of my favorite comic strips, Charlie Brown says to his friend
Linus: “Perhaps you can give me an answer, Linus. What would you do if
you felt that no one liked you?”
Linus replies, “I’d try to look at myself objectively, and see
what I could do to improve. That’s my answer, Charlie Brown.”
To which Charlie replies, “I hate that answer!”
Resistance
to change is universal.
Don’t
believe me? Here’s a fun fact: in 1993, there were approximately 1600 members
of the International Flat Earth Research Society of America.
And this quote from their president, Charles K. Johnson, explains it
all, “When I saw the globe in grade school I didn’t accept it then and
I don’t accept it now.”
People do
not naturally resist change. People naturally resist being changed.
I hear so
many young leaders and entrepreneurs around the world talking about their
passion to see change in the world. And I love hearing all their dreams and
strategies being put into action to help bring about positive change.
The only
problem is, before anything can change around you there must
first be a change inside you.
I love this thought from Mahatma Gandhi, “Be the change you
want to see in the world.”
The
distance between where you stand right now and where you want to be is measured
by the changes you are willing to make in your life.
Creating
positive change begins with a dedication to first change your self.
According
to John Maxwell, there are three catalysts for change:
1. People change when they hurt enough that they have to change
2. People change when they learn enough that they want to change
3. People change when they receive enough that they are able to change.
Take
Alfred Nobel for example. He was a Swedish chemist who made a fortune by
inventing dynamite and other powerful explosives that equipped weapons of mass
destruction.
They
named the Nobel Peace Prize after him. See the irony yet? But that’s only the
first chapter of Alfred’s story.
When his
brother died, a newspaper mistakenly printed Alfred’s obituary instead.
The
obituary described the dead man as one who made it possible to kill more
people, more quickly than anyone in history.
Alfred
was shaken after reading this account of his life and devoted the vast majority
of his wealth toward efforts that benefit humanity.
What can
we learn from Alfred’s story?
1. It’s never too late to change.
2. Change in the world starts with change in you.
You can
make a choice to change today.
Consider
these questions:
1. What changes do you need to make right now that you have been
unwilling to make?
2. What is holding you back the most from achieving your personal and/or
professional goals?
3. What change do you need to make in yourself that will lead to positive
change in the people around you?
When
positive change is successful, while it may be difficult and could be painful,
I guarantee that you will always look back and call it growth.
Mark Cole serves as the CEO of all John Maxwell
Companies and has more than 25 years of leadership and team development
experience, which uniquely qualifies him to have an integral role and be the
champion of the John C. Maxwell brand. He is committed to adding value to
individual leaders and leadership teams. Mark has experience in both the
non-profit and for-profit sectors, and he has led companies through economic
challenges, growth barriers, and disconnected team dynamics.
Mark has learned team development from the
world’s leading source of expertise: John C. Maxwell. Mark has worked more
closely with John than anyone else in the world, and brings exclusive access to
John’s real time principles to the Team. Mark delivers time tested leadership
principles ranging from personal leadership to multi-corporation leadership. He
resources leaders to develop those around them, ensuring teams are working to
their highest potential.
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