The Principle of Change - Learn Four Essential Steps of Change Management.

If you're ready to start living your life by design rather than by default, here are four essential steps to change management that will support you along the way.

The first step in supporting yourself through change is to spend some time quietly examining your thoughts and beliefs. Identify the main problem or two in your life, and ask yourself, "What beliefs am I currently holding onto that are creating this in my life? Are these beliefs still true for me now?"

Your past thoughts and beliefs have created your present circumstances. So what you choose to think and therefore believe now, will create your next week, your next month, your next year and so on. Unless you examine your thoughts, you may be holding on to something subconsciously, that you internalized as a young child, and yet it no longer serves you.

Are you beginning to see that only you can think for yourself, no matter how much control is currently being imposed upon you? In other words, no one else is inside your head. Therefore choose to control your own thoughts by becoming aware of them.

"When you change the way you look at things, things change."

Do not get frustrated as you start this process because for the first while as you start to become aware of your thoughts and make an effort to change them, you will still have negative or unserving thoughts. Simply acknowledge the thought - Thank you - choose to let it go. Do not dwell on it and do not resist it. Soon you will be catching yourself faster when you do slip into negative thinking and you will be able to replace the negative thought with a more empowering one.

The second step in supporting yourself through change is to start approving and loving your self. I am not referring to a conceit filled, navel gazing exercise but rather having a genuine healthy respect for self.

Self-criticism is deadly to your progress. One question you can ask, "If I treated my friends like I treat myself internally, would they still be my friends?"

Be kind to yourself as you start to implement changes. Reward yourself in small ways that let your subconscious know that you are going forward and making progress. Most people do not love themselves enough and therefore have a hard time loving and accepting others for who they are.

Making a daily entry in your journal, that lets you see what you have done well, is a great way to support yourself. At the end of each day, take a few minutes to write out 5 things you did favorably. It can be as small as giving someone a genuine compliment and making their day to having presented your new business opportunity to 4 people. Acknowledge the small things you accomplished to get you closer to your desired intention.

The third step in supporting yourself through change is to do some release work around the negative emotions you are holding on to. This step is vital to your success. Letting go and releasing old hurts, anger, buried resentment of another's good, grief, guilt, sadness, and disappointments will not only make you feel so much lighter and more energetic but you will also be able to go forward so much more effectively and quickly.

"The greatest revolution of our generation is the discovery that human beings, by changing the inner attitudes of their minds, can change the outer aspects of their lives." William James

Many articles and books have been dedicated solely to doing release work around these powerfully negative emotions. The strategy.ies that will work best for you will depend on what you are holding on to and how intense that pain is. There is a time and a place for working with professionals on these issues. Having said that, the average person, can learn one or two strategies that they can easily implement by themselves and be served well, overall.

I personally enjoy the work of Dr. Larry Nims and his practical strategies. You can check this out for yourself on the Web.
The fourth essential step to change management is Forgiveness. The concept of forgiveness ties in with the previous steps of letting go of old pain and of loving yourself.

It is important to be aware that we can never give away what we do not own. Read that last sentence again please. That means that you can never love someone else if you do not love yourself. You can never really forgive someone if you cannot forgive yourself, for your past errors. Love is always the answer.

There are a variety of mental exercises one can use in order to forgive. Remember you are not forgiving someone else for them. You are doing so for yourself. That means that you can actually forgive someone without them knowing about it. You do not have to have a face-to-face encounter in order to forgive.

In your mind, you can visualize a stage and see the person you are upset with on that stage. You can say, "I see ______ and I forgive you for. Thank you for teaching me _________" We can learn something from every difficulty. Perhaps the difficulty has made you the resilient and strong person you are today. Perhaps you are more determined to succeed because of what you have been through.

You must recognize and accept that your past does not equal your future; if you choose to think different thoughts and make different decisions based on your new thoughts and beliefs.

Practicing these four essential steps in change management will help you to support yourself through the change process.

Lynette Chartier, Life Style Mentor and Successful Entrepreneur, is helping many become the next success story.