Expect Change(s)
Jamie Efaw
VP of Development Services at Young Life | Executive Coach | Retired Military | Beekeeper | Gardener | Author | Speaker
Expect Change(s)
“No man ever?steps in the same river twice, for?it's?not the same river and he's not the same man.” Heraclitus
This quote resonates with me because it is a reminder that everything in life is constantly changing, including myself.
You may think to yourself, “Jamie, you must have every step in the Incline memorized, because you’ve done it so often.”?The fact of the matter is, the Incline is different each time I hike. The heavy volume of daily traffic changes the shape of each step constantly. This idea of constant change applies not only to the shape of the Incline, but also to the weather conditions that can turn a familiar hike into a new challenge at any movement. And as I reflected in the chapter “Expect the Unexpected,” the weather can definitely change your experience on the Incline.
I remember one day when I did the Incline. When I started at the bottom, it was a bit overcast but a comfortable temperature, with no snow or ice.?The path was clear. I was wearing running shoes and a light long-sleeved shirt.
I never imagined when I left my house that I’d be hiking in snow 30 minutes later, but I was.
It wasn’t just frost. It was full-on snow coming down along with pellets of ice.
You can see from the picture, where the frost/snow line begins.
Sometimes as you are accomplishing your goals, the environment may become more hostile and unwelcoming. Just as the weather and environment can change quickly on the Incline, so to can the challenges we face as we work towards our goals.
Don’t expect things to stay the same as you continue to grow and accomplish your goals. The environment in which you start your journey may be very different than the middle, and still different at the end.
Just as the steps of the Incline change regularly, you can't expect today's challenges to present themselves the same way as they did yesterday.
Just as the environment changes, you change too. Experiences change a person.
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As you have new experiences and encounter new challenges it is important to reflect on them so that you can continue to grow and develop as an individual. We are never fully finished with our personal growth journey.
There is always more to learn, more challenges to overcome, and more opportunities to explore.
Caution:?Don’t expect everyone to understand what you have gone through or understand your experience. Similarly, don’t expect them to recognize that you have grown into a different person.
Philippians 3:12 Not that I have already obtained all this, or have already arrived at my goal,?but I press on to take hold?of that for which Christ Jesus took hold of me.
1 Corinthians 13:11 When I was a child, I spoke as a child, I understood as a child, I thought as a child: but when I became a man, I put away childish things.
Personal Reflection:
Think about an experience in your life that changed you.
How was it that you changed and did others notice?
Have you ever had an experience where you changed the environment as a result of your experience?
How can you prepare for the changes in yourself and the changes in your environment as you achieve goals, finish projects or simply encounter life’s obstacles?
For more Life Lessons like this, check out my book, “Lessons from the Incline” available here:?https://lnkd.in/gwma-ptF
Managing Director
1 年“....it is important to reflect on [your experiences] so that you can continue to grow and develop as an individual.”?This is an important statement.?I hope people don’t miss it. As simple and common sense as this is, too few actually do it.? Many assume that learning is automatic and uniform. Yet, we can easily find examples where two people have the same experience and different takeaways—and a third person may have no takeaway at all. Robert J. Thomas puts it more succinctly, “Experience by itself guarantees nothing.” While experience alone may not guarantee that we learn from it, we generally do learn something from experience, even if we are unaware of the lessons at the time. By reflecting on our experiences, however, we increase our learning and our ability to articulate the lessons to others. By being able to give voice to our experiences, we can not only share lessons learned with others, but we can also accelerate our own development. Without reflection on experience and articulation of the lessons learned, our learning will be haphazard and incremental at best.?
Writer, Author, Silversmith
1 年We were taught to be flexible in our careers.