Changing What Doesn't Work

"Insanity is doing the same thing over and over again and expecting different results." 
Albert Einstein

Change is the only constant in the Universe. We are meant to evolve and grow. We were never meant to stick with the status quo. Yet, many of us have a hard time with change. We eat the same foods. We do the same activities. We put on our clothes exactly the same way every morning. Let's face it, we like doing things the way we have always done them. Unfortunately, that sometimes means we repeat the same patterns that are not good for us. We think if we do it this time, it will surely work—but it never does. Yet, we carry on in the same manner anyway. 

It takes courage to shake things up and move forward. The good thing is that it's never too late to do so. 

Recently, I had an eye opening experience when it dawned on me that I had been repeating a pattern that was not working. When I realized what I was doing, it was as though the Universe shook me in my shoes and said, "Hey Babe, what are you doing? Here's the Truth. See the Light, because this thing you are doing isn't working. It never has and it never will."

Okay. Got it. Point taken. Now what?

What was the catalyst to bring this miraculous shift? To explain that, I have to start at the beginning. As a Spiritual person, I tend to see the good in everyone. I see there points of view, even if I disagree with it, but I am the first to admit that I am not perfect and there are those that I have hard time with. When push comes to shove, I have a certain way of doing things and if someone's position affects me in some way then my angelic side hits the road. 

If I think I am right, then the other guy must definitely be wrong. I justify just how right I am not only to myself, but to all who are in hearing range. If someone is wrong then I argue my case until I am nearly blue in the face. There was just one problem with this way of thinking. Every time I repeated this pattern with regards to one particular person I worked with, it not only sent me into a tailspin of dark emotions, I was also getting nowhere fast. There was never a resolution to our issue. My habit was clearly not working. 

This particular colleague and I had a ubiquitous string of arguments that lasted for a year. He was the one blemish on this job that I just could not shake. If I said black, he could be counted on to say white. If I scheduled him to meet a client, he'd conveniently forget to show up. If I scheduled one of his employees to work on a project, he would schedule them for a so-called "emergency" elsewhere. No matter the circumstance, we were on polar opposite sides of the Universe.

It became so ridiculously bad between us that the general manager suggested that I cc him on all correspondence with this person so that hopefully he would be more responsive to me if the GM was attached to the email. So, yeah, I was justifiably annoyed by this whole situation. 

He and I never seemed to stop arguing, culminating on my last day at that particular job, when we had yet another blow up. It was on that fateful day, when I had already scheduled someone months in advance to work on a very large and very important project. On the morning of the project, my work-adversary took him away for an "emergency" painting job. All I could think about was what kind of emergency paint job is ever needed that it can't wait a few hours? Needless to say, my last nerve felt like it was going to explode in any moment.

But then it hit me. The a-ha moment was upon me. It was as though a magic wand waved through my mind, and I could see the truth. The veil had been lifted and I realized that I was a part of the problem. Yes, me. I had my proverbial boxing gloves strung onto my fists for so long, I didn't see another way. Thankfully, the gloves decided to fall away when I realized that every time I fought with him, the only thing it was doing was creating more animosity. The wall we had built between us was only getting thicker with each verbal stone I threw. It wasn't serving him, and more importantly, it wasn't serving me. The wall between us that I had helped to build had to come down. It was time. And I had to be the one to break it apart.

Don't get me wrong, this was not about me having a conversation with him in order to get over our differences. This was an internal thing. It was about me letting go of any resentment toward him. Simple. I just hadn't seen it before, but now it was as clear as day. The resentment was the glue that was binding us together in this destructive pattern. It was time to break free from those restraints.

So, I calmed down and took a breath. I breathed in the air that helped to calm my mind and as I did so, I decided to send him Love. Yep, I sent him Love. The one person at work that I could not stand was getting a big whopping dose of Love. I visualized in my mind's eye hearts all over him as I repeated my affirmation of Love. 

Between taking a conscious breath and by sending him Love, I felt better. And frankly "better" is an understatement. I felt terrific. I could have danced on air at that moment. Nothing could have bothered me. I had shifted my perception. I had shifted the way I did things and I felt connected to my Inner Divinity in such a beautiful way. As the air coursed through my body, I no longer felt the need to be bothered by him. 

Hallelujah! 

The whole point was to feel better, but that wasn't all that happened. There is actually more to the story. 

The day rolled along as it normally does. I was busy taking care of things. I never told this colleague what I had done and yet, only a few hours later my now former work-adversary paid me a compliment—me—an actual bonafide compliment—in front of the GM no less! The person he liked possibly least in all the world was receiving his kindness. 

I had shifted, and the world followed suit. Once I changed direction in my thought pattern, he rode the wave of change with me.

From my perspective, even the smallest of miracles is still a miracle. When I get caught up in emotion the next time, I will simply reflect back to this day and to this man. I have been changed forever because of the lesson he has brought to me. He inadvertently became my teacher that day. And I am grateful for it.

It is always a good idea to stop and take a look at our repeated patterns. If they are not giving us the results that we want, they likely never will. However, we have an opportunity to be the harbinger of change. Once we change, the world will ride along with us.

And that is a good thing.

Thank you for reading and Namaste. (The Light in me recognizes the Light in you.)

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