Change is constant.
Change can be all at once challenging, confronting, confusing, exciting, rewarding, and much more.
While change can be all those things, and sometimes all those things at once, how we deal with change will define our level of success and enjoyment.
2022 was a year full of change. Changing interest rates, inflation, geopolitical tensions, the pandemic and how governments responded constantly changed, the list goes on.
I think how we deal with change comes down to our mindset. We can choose to be optimistic or pessimistic, positive or negative, to take responsibility or to blame. These choices directly affect how change impacts our lives, for better or worse.
Change is almost always out of our control. On the flipside, how we deal with change is almost always 100 per cent within our control.
I’ve been fortunate to have great role models in my life who choose to be optimistic and positive, to take responsibility and even be enthusiastic, when confronted with change.
We can’t control whether or not a pandemic happens, whether supply shortages cause the cost of living to increase, whether banks increase interest rates, or whether a country chooses to invade another… you get the point.
We can control whether or not we choose to follow health guidelines, how our money gets spent, how much we spend, which bank we go with, what commitments we make… this list goes on.
As we come to the end of 2022, we should expect more change in 2023. But in my view that’s not necessarily a bad thing..!
I want to wrap up the year by leaving you with some summer reading. I find it fascinating that the world is changing daily but good advice will always be good advice—whether it was written in 1922 or 2022—and you can unearth an awful lot of it by reading books. The upcoming summer break is a perfect time to reset, and while your mind and body rests absorb some great insights to inspire you into a brand-new year.
Here are my favourite books on change, that double as great Christmas presents:
The Resilience Project by Hugh can Cuylenberg
Resilience is often cited as a person or organisation’s capability to deal with change.
Hugh van Cuylenberg is a former schoolteacher who was volunteering at an impoverished school in northern India when he stumbled across what he found to be the secret formula for building resilience.
He has worked with pretty much every successful sporting team in Australia.
More importantly, the book gives a fantastic formula and set of habits that will help build resilience and our ability to deal with change.
Who Moved My Cheese by Spencer Johnson
The ‘OG’ of change management written all the way back in 1999, and still as relevant as ever. It’s a timeless classic.
This one is a book for all ages – kids and adults – and is a very short read (roughly 100 small pages).
The book is told as a parable, and the ‘cheese’ that gets moved is a metaphor for all the things we want in life. A good job, a loving relationship, money or possessions, health, spirituality, you name it.
The book is about the mindset of change – seeing it, adapting to it, and most importantly finding a way to enjoy the change as it happens.
The Gap and the Gain by Dan Collins
Dan Collins coaches some of the most successful sportspeople, entrepreneurs, businesspeople, and professionals in the world.
This is one of the best books ever written when it comes to staying motivated, but at the same time experiencing joy and happiness even as we change and grow as individuals.
We’ve all seen the countless examples of successful people who are miserable. That’s because most people get stuck in the mindset of comparing their current self to their ideal version of themselves.
This book provides a great template and process for staying in what Dan calls ‘the Gain’ – a state of mind that helps us experience positive, powerful emotions that will motivate us to pursue new goals and ultimately become more and more successful over time, without compromising our joy and happiness.
Last but not least, my book Bulletproof Investing also makes for a great summer read and Christmas gift (of course)!
See you in 2023.
Last but not least, my book Bulletproof Investing also makes for a great summer read and Christmas gift!
See you in 2023.
