We all face change in our personal and professional lives:  corporate mergers and acquisitions; reassignments within the workplace; a new strategic plan; relocation to a new city; another birthday.  Some change is comfortable, some uncomfortable.  Yes, the age-old cliché is true—the only constant is change. 

What is not constant, however, is how people deal with change.  Some people embrace and enjoy change; the majority, however, avoid change at all costs.   

So, why don’t people change?  For many, the underlying reason for not changing is the belief that things (we) are OK as is—the status quo is comfortable so why rock the boat.  For others, what’s worked in the past has produced at least reasonable levels of personal, emotional, and financial satisfaction and fear of an unknown future, even if it’s better,  precludes the decision to leave the past behind.  Our current comfort zone is, well—comfortable.   

If you are not changing for the better, you are changing for the worse.  Since you are reading this article, the underlying assumption is you want to change for the better.  There are tools to manage change and it is critical for your personal and professional growth that you learn and implement these tools.  Think about this quote from Eric Hoffer: “In times of change, learners inherit the earth while the learned find themselves beautifully equipped to deal with a world that no longer exists.”

The successes you have achieved in your past are only a glimmer of the successes that lie ahead IF you are willing to embrace the possibilities.

Please join us on Wednesday, February 25, from 5:30 to 8:30pm at the Hampton Inn & Suites, 2740 Cypress Ridge Boulevard in Wesley Chapel for an extraordinary learning opportunity.

Leadership is Everyone’s Business is a 2.5-hour learning session that will provide you a crystal clear understanding of the leadership concept; recognition that leadership is behavior-driven; an assessment of how frequently YOU demonstrate the Five Practices of Exemplary Leadership; and initial steps of an action plan to improve YOUR leadership practices.

Registration and payment must be received by February 23, 2009.  Please direct any questions or comments to Michael J. Audino at 727-415-9668 or at michael@michaelaudino.com

A speaker at the 2nd National Positive Aging Conference advised participants that “when a flower blooms, the bees arrive uninvited.”.  What a powerful metaphor for how we might approach life.

The blooms and the bees is a beautiful example of what mother nature can teach us.  If we are willing to open ourselves to opportunities and actively involve ourselves, the universe will produce powerful results that were totally unexpected.  And, as this example readily illustrates, both the individual (the flower) and the universe (the bees) benefit from the interaction.

So,  be a flower—and bloom!