Author and speaker Sandra Crowe creates awareness of ineffective behaviors and provides methodologies and action steps to offset them while redirecting behavior toward more uplifting interactions between people.
By Sandra Crowe
It’s January. Resolution time. How many of you are making resolutions about how you are going to deal with change this year? Most of us have a fair degree of uncertainty in our lives right now. Given that, here are five tips for thinking about how you think about uncertainty present in your life:
1) Make it ok to live in the “not knowing.” As humans we want to know. We want to “brace” ourselves for “what’s next” and pad our punching bag for the next hit. All of us want security, control, and approval and knowing gives us some kind of reassurance, even if it’s bad.
2) Ask what it is you are afraid of (really). More than the fear of the unknown, break down what your core enemy is. Then ask yourself, “How realistic is that?” Look for evidence to the contrary.
Haven’t you had new things to learn before? Didn’t you adapt to your new boss last time? Be careful of the “yes, but…” as you will find excuses popping up to justify your fears.
If the questions you ask yourself determine your destiny, then maybe what you should be asking is, “Who could I become as a result of this learning?” Or even, “What doors could this open?” When you see the possibility it creates, the fear becomes insignificant and the possibilities limitless.
3) Move out of fear and into vision. As you ask these questions, notice how a vision for what’s possible emerges. Fear and vision can’t exist in the same thought. As you begin to think about what you can create or what positive things could be in store for you or your family, you can begin to strategize instead of feeling paralyzed.
4) Ask how others have done it. If you want to create vision but don’t know how, this is the time to ask your network. Get on your social media sites and pose questions about how people have found new jobs, handled a boss, or solved a problem.
If an issue is within the organization, ask others who may be in the know, network up, or ask someone who knows someone. Use it as an opportunity to make connections for knowledge or positioning.
5) Act and let go. Whatever you do, make sure you do something. Being stuck in the fear is not only paralyzing, but also reinforcing. It can be a vicious cycle if you let it be. Dig yourself out of the fear conversation by setting a number of actions to challenge yourself. After you act, let go of any outcome you think needs to happen (hard to do, but critical).
Doing all this won’t get rid of the fact that you don’t know, but will help you better prepare and offset the angst you have around it. Once the angst is down, you will be better positioned to do what you need to do from a place of greater peace and acceptance.
Learn more
Watch a short video of Sandra Crowe on Managing Your Resentments from Skillsoft's Leadership Channel™
