New beginnings

From time to time we all dream about new beginnings. We wonder how our life got to the state it is in right now, how did we get stuck with our job, relationships, social circles, commitments… And from time to time you just wish for a fresh start, a new beginning. But the older we get, the less likely we are willing to do anything about it.

But here’s the thing, we often don’t think change is a “real change” unless it is something drastic. And often fear holds us back from doing something drastic. We are too scared of loosing what we have right now. Ironically what we have now, and what we might hope to escape is exactly what we use as an excuse to do nothing!

But I think more than the need to escape, what really holds us back from making a real change in whatever situation we feel stuck in, is that need for something drastic. But what if we started from the small things? What if we only tried to fix or change one small thing today? You see as I write this, it is Monday morning. It is the dawn of a new day, a clean slate, I was looking at a blank page before the words started to spill on the page. It is also the dawn of a new week, that will give me seven new beginnings 😉

You see unless you really are going to pack your bags and leave everything you know behind, drastic big changes need to start from a small change. Small change in your everyday life. Lets think about few little changes that possibly could change things around in the long run, and how to implement them:

Job. So are you stuck in a job you hate? It is never too late to make a change. What really gets to my nerves is when I hear people tell me how lucky I am being able to have a job that is my passion. I made a conscious decision to go after my dream. I was told I could not do it, I was told I am not good enough, I was told it is too hard and I’m better off having a “real job”. What did I do? I did NOT believe the people who told me I could not do it. I worked my ass off to get better at every aspect, my guitar playing my songwriting, my singing. I still do. I took “too hard” as a challenge, and it still drives me everyday. And to me this is a “real job!” I work very hard to be as “lucky” as I am. So what ever it is you dream of doing, don’t believe the excuses, go for it! And if it is just a new job you are after, you need to take some solid steps to make change. Set up or update your LinkedIn account and spend some time reading how to make the most of it. In one week you can make a big difference with it. Figure out what you really want to do, what would it take to do it and break it down to small steps. Then start working on those steps, one step at the time.

Relationships. As I will talk about your social circles next, by relationship I am talking about the relationship you have with your partner here. If your relation ship is not what you want it to be, you need to ask your self why? You cannot fix something unless you first don’t recognise what needs to be fixed. Once you have done this, the next step most of the time is communication. And don’t just attack your partner, pick one thing at the time to fix, and talk about how it make you feel, and listen to them how it makes them feel. And really listen! You need to be willing to compromise as well. If you are not, maybe you need to think if you should be in a relationship in the first place. But most of the big things that drag us down, usually end up being surprisingly small things once you actually start to talk about them openly. If you for some reason are in a relationship where your partner is not willing to communicate and compromise, then it might be time to think about more drastic change.

Social circles. Good friends are worth their weight in gold. Always surround your self with people you want to spend time with, people who inspire you, who drive you to do better things, people who accept you as you are. And get rid of toxic people. You don’t need them. Life is too short to spend your time with people who hold you back, or drag you down.

Commitments. These usually are to do with finances. And there are very few things you cannot fix even on this front. Reevaluate what you need, and I mean really need in your life. Eliminate every other expense and put money a side. Do this even no matter how little it seems, soon enough you’ll start to see a difference. The thing about saving money is that you need to start from somewhere. And it is that starting from nothing that we see as very daunting. But once we get started, soon enough we will see a change. The thing is, we all need much less than we think to be happy. If you need some inspiration on this subject, I recommend you watch a documentary film called Happy, directed by Roko Belic.

It’s the little changes we are willing to make that will make big change in our life in the long run. Every day is a new beginning, every day you have chance to take a look at something from a new perspective. Everyday you can decide to take action, instead of just wallowing in misery and dreaming of leaving it all behind. What can you change in your life today? Here’s to new beginnings.

J.P.

The author J.P. Kallio is a singer songwriter
To get EIGHT of his songs for free go HERE