New Experiences, The ROI of Embracing Change

As a proud pager wearing millennial and change evangelist the evolution and pace of change that we’re seeing in 2016 excites me! Rapid change is creating massive chaos & pivoting for businesses and brands of all sizes.

“It is not the strongest or the most intelligent who will survive but those who can best manage change.” — Charles Darwin

Change for change’s sake is just stupid. Don’t mistake my excitement for change, chaos, and pivoting as me being an adrenaline junkie and needing my fix. Rather this pace of change is forcing us to reevaluate why we do what we do and how we do what we do. I don’t believe Churchill was wrong in saying “to be perfect is to change often” but times have changed and the need to be perfect has now been replaced with the need to provide value at the RIGHT TIME!

“To improve is to change; to be perfect is to change often.” -Winston Churchill

Life has always been painted in a way that as a kid we are asked what we want to be when we grow up, rather than what do we want to become great at next. As a high schooler we are asked what we want to major in not because people are curious about what we will study rather they want to know what your lifetime career will be. As we get older in life the 30 year mortgage, the white picket fence and the setting up for retirement is something discussed at every family dinner and holiday gathering.

“Change is the law of life. And those who look only to the past or present are certain to miss the future.” -John F. Kennedy

Interestingly enough when you talk to your grandparents they’ll always remind you to enjoy life and find a career that you love as being retired is nothing like the years that lead up to retirement. As a Dad of three girls, I’m always reminded that they grow up so fast and that I need to enjoy and capture every moment of their youth as it goes by too fast.

“The price of doing the same old thing is far higher than the price of change.” -Bill Clinton

So in a world more divided than any other time in my 35 years on this earth, isn’t it time we stop making excuses for why we avoid change or even worse only look at change as an all or nothing endeavor?

“Any change, even a change for the better, is always accompanied by drawbacks and discomforts.” -Arnold Bennett

No experience or change is exactly the same but approaching all experiences and change with an open mindset can be a game changer for all life experiences. Embracing change by weighing the risks vs rewards, questioning the way things were done in the past and focusing on real-time solutions will allow us to find success in this world of chaos.

“The first step toward change is awareness. The second step is acceptance.” -Nathaniel Branden

Let’s accept that most of us between the ages of 35 and 55 have no idea what we want to be when we grow up and that with chaos and drastic change comes new opportunities and experiences we could have never imagined would be available.

“Your success in life isn’t based on your ability to simply change. It is based on your ability to change faster than your competition, customers, and business.” -Mark Sanborn

Living in the moment doesn’t mean you don’t plan for the future or you don’t understand the importance of building up your retirement portfolio. Rather being open to throwing out that plan or adding a new chapter to that plan allows us to capture that moment and absorb our life in real-time providing moments that define the right-time.

“When you’re finished changing, you’re finished.” — Benjamin Franklin

Life is a journey. I believe we’ve all heard that saying before and like to believe we understand it and embrace its meaning. Isn’t it time for us to look at the change around us, not for the chaos it’s causing, rather the opportunities it’s presenting for us? Seeing change as a positive has a transformative effect that will ultimately create new experiences that not even the kid inside us could have imagined!

“Change isn’t the result of bad planning or choices, rather those plans and choices are the foundation that empower our mindset to embrace amazing new experiences!” — Brian Fanzo

Originally posted at: https://medium.com/digital-change/the-roi-of-change-are-new-experiences-82c641bdbb12#.s88jf6wfk