Whee, Change is in the Air for SeeChange

There are times, in the evolution of one’s work and life, when the yearning for change needles and nudges us, quietly, in the background, perhaps, until something wakes us up.

I was about to be woke, that autumn morning, striding through the meadow’s tall grasses, breathing the mountain air with maskless abandon, when a hawk swooped down before me, hooked beak and striated brown and white wing, so close I could feel the air shift.

Simplicity and freedom, my lips mouthed, heart thumping in my chest, as I watched the hawk glide upward on a gust of breeze and vanish into a stand of trees.

The hawk was gone; but its image, its symbol lingered in my head. As a professional change agent, I try to pay attention to signs like these -- and help my clients do so too.

SeeChange Rule #1: Pay attention to the messages. These are the doors – they crack open and invite you into a place of possibility. If you let them. If you’re ready.

I was so ready. By then it had been almost nine trying months in pandemic lockdown. Election day loomed. My amygdala was in constant hijack mode – I know I wasn't the only one -- panic attacks, sleepless nights, difficulty focusing.

Simplicity and freedom?

That hawk was telling me to get out of DC, and fast. After 22 years in my Mount Pleasant rowhouse, I was gunning to sell and go – quick, before the city went up in flames. I felt desperate to escape. Fear was my driver. My sleeplessness only worsened.

One Friday night, two friends intervened. Thank Goddess for friends.

SeeChange Rule #2: Change is not a solo sport; enlist support.

Seated at my dining table, the accountant friend warned of tax implications and flashed her depreciation schedules. The writer friend came at it from a different angle. Closing her eyes to take-in the vibe, she announced. “You cannot sell this house, ever. Good ghosts live here; they don’t want you to go.” She opened one eye to the flickering candlelight. “They’d be okay if you rent,” she winked.

I chuckled with relief. Yes, I wanted freedom. But I had a strong attachment to home: my 1910 rowhouse was my sanctuary, my business headquarters, an old, solid friend. Cutting the cord completely felt scary. It’s a big world out there. I had no idea where I was going to next. Not to mention the risks of wandering the world in the midst of a pandemic.

I could not ignore the hawk. But I needed to dig deeper, to follow my own coachly advice.

SeeChange Rule #3: Honor the transition. Transitions are the bridge between one ending and a new beginning.

I began vision-boarding, freewriting, and brainstorming with friends and my own therapist-coaches. Over time, the truth got clearer in my heart and mind: I’ll take a yearlong sabbatical, out of DC, for writing and adventure.

Instead of giving up my current life for good, I wanted space to explore. I pictured myself: On the road, in touch with nature, I discover new vistas, make new connections, and explore the creativity, peace, and freedom within me.

You know it when it’s right: it’s usually REAL simple. You feel a smile spread inside you. And when you share it with gusto, others smile back – maybe they hoot.

It took five months, from the hawk citing, to get to this place – to be ready and clear-enough to share my change with YOU.

SeeChange Rule #4: Change takes time; it doesn’t happen on a dime.

Now in planning mode, flipcharts paper my walls. I have a million decisions to make to clear out the past and move into the future. It’s overwhelming. To keep from hyperventilating, I have to come back to my original mantra: simplicity and freedom.

I can make this process complicated and constricting – a natural tendency that will keep me stuck in the status quo. Or I can begin living into the change NOW.

How about YOUR change? What’s brewing for you?

I may be hitting the road, but I am just an email or Zoom call away. My door is ALWAYS open to changemakers, shapeshifters, and reinventers.

Whee-ohh, let change begin!

Follow my journey and share yours here ==> https://www.seechangeconsulting.com/blog

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