Time for a change

Ben was a big success. This was no time for a change. Ben had customers to serve, reputations to maintain and obligations to meet. Any misgivings he felt were getting dismissed by him. Any sense that "it didn't feel right to continue as is" -- were added to his "circular file".

Ben knows about "creative destruction" and the "innovator's dilemma". He's aware that successes fail by "trying harder" and "sticking to their guns" when circumstances change the rules. Ben knows that none of that applies to his current success because he's still succeeding.

Ben practices an "attitude of gratitude". He knows the power of positive thinking and has proven that things do increase when he appreciates them. Ben finds the "Law of Attraction" to work for him too. He thinks about succeeding until it feels real and attracts some evidence of what he's "believing in receiving". He takes responsibility for his success as if he created it.

Ben is wary of becoming over-idealistic. He has had "his bubble burst" in the past. He knows that his over-optimism will be met with cynicism and every sunny side of life has a shadow to integrate. Ben is confident that his approach is realistic. His success has its ups and downs, its good days and bad. He's dealing with "what is" when he deals with all those customers to serve, reputations to maintain and obligations to meet.

All hell broke loose one day. Two different customers morphed into monsters. A trusted ally stabbed him in the back. A long term commitment was broken by a reliable supplier. His own "attitude of gratitude" vanished. He wondered if the eruption of his fears, grudges and bitterness was attracting more misery. He knew if he did not turn his outlook around quickly, he would have more hell to pay: by his bad karma, the Law of Attraction, asking for trouble or "believing in receiving" negative experiences.

He realized he could only be grateful if it was time for a change. He could appreciate the setback if he had been turning his back on the gentler indicators of his next step. He began to see how his misgivings were telling him something he had ignored. When it did not feel right to persist without question, he had not questioned his persistence.

Ben got to a place where the "outbreak of hell" was a lesson to learn from. He did not need to resist it, fight it or oppose it like a warrior. He needed to get it, let it in and be changed by it -- like the trusting protege of a mentor. When he really got it, he changed his story -- and that's a whole new story.

Technorati tags: crisis management, resilience, life lessons, setbacks