Chasing Different

Everyone wants change, but no one wants to be changed.

You’ve no doubt seen or heard that quote or some variation. I found several on the Internet when I was thinking about this post.

Everyone wants to change the world, but no one wants to change themselves.

Everyone wants to change the world but no one wants to help with the dishes.

Everyone wants to change the world but no one wants to teach Sunday School.

Different is a state. We want Different, but we want someone else to deliver it to our door, wrapped and paid in full.

Different costs. We lose the energy it takes to change, and we also lose the benefit of the Status Quo. We can’t have Different and Same. To get Different, we must pay the discomfort of the unknown. We also pay the opportunity cost, the other things we could have done with the energy, time and money we spend on Different. We risk not achieving Different and its benefits, and the potential cost of having forfeited the Status Quo and having to do a 3rd thing if we fail.

A new year challenges us to appreciate Different. “Let’s not do the same old same old this year. Let’s do something different.” We look forward to the next 365 days and appreciate the vision of Different… a different job, body, weight, attitude, experiences, education, resources, tribe, results, even a different life.

But after we embark on our pursuit of Different, we start to experience the cost. The clarity of the imagined future dims over time. If we’re not careful, we end up with only a view of the cost, and not the reward. Our interest wanes. We drop off, lose our motivation, take our eyes off the ball. We all know what happens when someone takes their eyes off the ball. When we see the cost more than we see the benefit, our passion for Different disappears. We run back to the comfort of the Status Quo and we drive another nail in the coffin of our dreams…

Or not.

This year, I created a plan for some changes I want to implement. I want to remember Different. My goals are set up on a daily reminder with daily activity associated. The daily time commitment has an end, a point in the future when I can stop if I choose to.

You can’t get to Different using the methods that got you the Status Quo.

In the end, we will acquire the Different we chose. We will either let go of the Status Quo, and its benefits or we will settle for life without our Different. We will either achieve the Different we pursue or we will let our circumstances and our lack of focus on the future keep us from securing the outcome we desire. Persistence is remembering what you want. May we remember what we want this year and achieve the Different we dream about. It’s up to each of us.

So are you committed to Different for 2018? What is it? What plan do you have to keep it in front of you, on your list of priorities?