Change is forever and unlimited and we are all faced with changes every day.
Changes in the world and in our lives are happening so rapidly it scarcely gives us time to stop and reflect what it all means in the scheme of our personal selves. There is a tendency to move on to "What's next?" with too much speed. Change is similar to crossing a bridge. We all have crossed bridges to get from where we were to where we wanted to be. Some bridges are high-arched, some may look like one of the bridges of Madison County, or some have multiple levels. Some may even span many miles.
A personal example: I was looking for a one-owner car in 2001, my bridge was short and a little arched. I had specific criteria for the car I desired. I wanted it to be a one-owner, to cost less than $12,000 with payments of less than $300 a month after my down payment, and a financing plan of no longer than 30 months. And, of course, I wanted features such as air-conditioning, power windows, a CD player, and low mileage.
I was working in corporate America at the time. With the uncertainty as to whether the downsizing happening where I was employed would affect my position, I was deliberate in setting my financial limits, but not my luxury feature limits. When I started looking for a new automobile, my current car was not doing badly! I had a Dodge hatchback, which I bought from a one-owner anxious to sell at a price much lower than market price. However, it did have a lot of miles on it. After I had it for three years, it was starting to show wear and tear.
During several months of sporadically getting on my imaginary bridge to look for my luxury automobile, I searched the Internet and drove my friends crazy when they went with me to test drive one-owner Audis, Infinitis, Lexuses and other luxury autos. Often during lunch I would walk to dealerships about a mile from my office. One of these times I test drove an Infiniti. I had some questions about the high mileage and dirty interior for a one-year old car. It was way outside the price range I outlined; however, I was beginning to think that my dream might be ridiculous. So I put down $1,000 on this 2000 Infiniti.
When I asked how come there were over 25,000 miles on a car that was only a year old with spills in the interior, the answers made sense at the time and I was willing to accept whatever they said. The next day however, my intuition had me check the VIN number with CarFax as to the history of the car. It turned out the car was from a rental agency. I cancelled the order. It may have been a one-owner, but it had multiple drivers.
I point this out to you to demonstrate how we can sometimes give up on our dreams and settle in the middle of crossing our bridge and not get to the other side. When I decided to go for a higher priced auto with higher monthly payments and questionable mileage, I was giving in to disbelief that what I wanted was foolish and impossible. Not only that, but if I had purchased the 2000 Infiniti, I would have suffered financially. I was listening to other people's opinions, as well as the gremlins in my head. What I am about to tell you is the Law of Attraction in motion.
There was an opportunity to purchase a one-owner auto right in front of me, but I chose to ignore it because of the purple exterior! Purple is a favorite color of mine, but in a car?! My cousin was selling her 1999 Oldsmobile Alero. I wouldn't even test drive it until another cousin told me I was nuts not to at least check it out. I gave it a whirl around a few blocks. The Alero was fully loaded! And to boot, it not only had a CD player with surrounding speakers, but a cassette player as well. I have a number of cassettes on coaching and leadership that bear repeated listening, as well as books on tapes from the library. It had less than 17,000 miles on it. This was the car for me! I still have the car with only 46,000 miles. It has been low maintenance. And it is paid for.
I shared this extended car metaphor to demonstrate that in crossing your bridge to change, it is important to be intentional. It has power beyond the five senses. The speed with which you get to the other side of your bridge accelerates if you are in alignment with your intentions and feelings. I believed I would get the car I wanted and yet along the way, when it wasn't happening fast enough, I swayed back and forth on my goal and almost gave in to idea of my dream being impossible - and making a bad choice.
The caveat is that you allow the universe to deal with the details. I was looking for luxury within a certain price range. Alero is not considered a luxury car, but the features of my "purple passion" car are certainly luxurious. I even got a better price and it was one-owner!
Questions Hold the Answers:Copyright 2008 - Theresa-Maria Napa, CPCC
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