CHANGE IGNITES CHANGE

Just like my previous blog post, I’m currently flying while I write this, but I'm now flying back home after attending an exhibition for work. It has been a very successful exhibition for my job, but more importantly, one that was also personally rewarding. I could not have imagined beforehand how this exhibition would make me grow and glow so much personally. It still makes me smile to think back about it and know that my change, being visible and vocal about it, has been an inspiration for and is helping others.

"Your change ignites change within others. Their change will help you change more too."

The exhibition I attended was one of the largest in my industry. Being in the industry for about two decades means I have known many people in the industry for years or even decades. Many of them have become industry friends, and some have developed into genuine friendships on a personal level over the years. When I launched this blog, I also published it on LinkedIn, where I have over 5,000 followers and connections, and it got more exposure there. It was a scary and bold move to share something personal, like my change within my business environment, and I didn't know what to expect. But the feedback has been very positive, and I got heartfelt comments and messages when I shared it at the time.

This has continued during the exhibition. Some people haven't seen me in person for half a year, a year, or even longer. The number of times I heard people say that I looked so great was overwhelming, to say the least. I’m not used to people saying that I look great, but it was great to experience this. I lost 25kg in about 12 months and have been exercising. Yes, people have noticed. But it's not only the compliments I got on how I looked, but also hearing people say that they read my blog. I also found out that I had more people reading the blog I shared on LinkedIn than I thought I did. They knew about my change, but now they saw the proof and the effect of it, not just on the physical side, but also on how I had changed as a person.

"Transformation is not about becoming someone else. It’s about finally allowing yourself to become who you really are." — Brianna Wiest

But what has struck me most are the deeper personal interactions with people related to my change, when we could talk about it. One way I learned is that, together with an industry friend, I organized a networking run, and it inspired someone who bought shoes just by being present at the run. After the run, while talking with him during it, he made it clear that he was determined to pick up running again and told me that this was what he needed to get started. I also spoke with someone who has gone through a very similar process and journey of change to mine, and is in the process of writing her first book about the changes she has gone through. We could share things on this topic, both knowing exactly what we're talking about. At one of the networking events, I also spoke to someone who was touched by my blog and asked to come over for a weekend in France (where he lives) to spend time together and to talk about his and my journey, about faith and life in general, wanting to know a lot more. To name a few.

Last but not least, my event recap LinkedIn post received uplifting feedback. About how I am an inspiration to that person and others in the industry, and how someone who met me for the first time mentioned how many people in the industry talk highly of me. I didn't ask for anything like this, but it was very rewarding to hear all this, and it has certainly lifted me up.

Bottom line: it made me glow and grow. It filled me up. I now better understand my value to others, and knowing that my change is inspiring others is way more inspiring than I imagined. This has not been my goal when I started my journey of change, but I’m happy my change is a ripple moving forward, and I hope it will turn into waves at some point. I hope it will help others to change too by being open about my change, and let people experience the true me. I started the journey for myself, but now I continue it for myself and others, and it's great to see and hear what I do makes a difference in people’s lives. My change brought me a lot more than I expected beforehand (but also different from what I had expected), and I think that's a lesson I learned: change can go in directions and areas you didn't expect before, and for the better.

"Owning our story and loving ourselves through that process is the bravest thing that we’ll ever do." — Brené Brown

To give you some learnings about this, I can highlight a few of them:

• Change is the spiral upwards in your life. When you change, people notice. They will treat you differently, compliment you, wonder what you did, and ask for your advice. This will confirm your change and make you even more confident and focused on continuing your journey of change, or even help you accelerate it. It will take you to new heights you've never been before.

• Don’t feel guilty for focusing on yourself. If you’re going for change by having a focus on yourself to change, but you doubt whether you are allowed to focus on yourself: your change is not only for yourself to become a better version of yourself, but also for the people directly around you. Very likely in more ways than you can imagine. So don’t feel guilty about focusing on yourself to make a change. It will have its impact and will pay for itself over time, and likely more than you could have imagined.

• The reward of change is already there. Changing yourself is hard work. But at some point, you will see the fruits. When you have doubts during your journey of change (and you will have those): keep in mind that the reward will come! First of all, for yourself in becoming a better person, but also for the people around you. For sure, people close to you, but maybe way further than you think. The change is for yourself above all, but it might bring more to the table than you could have imagined before. Whatever it will bring you, it will be rewarding.

• Sharing gives freedom and helps others. Change is often not shared because it reveals where you came from. Shame and guilt about where we came from, are usually the ones that hold us back. It is not easy to share about your change and where you came from. But by sharing, you get rid of shame and guilt, which will give you the freedom you want. Not only that, but it will also inspire others who face similar challenges and have difficulty to be open about it. The effect of knowing and feeling it gives that others change because of you sharing your story, outweighs hiding it due to shame and guilt.

In short: Your change matters. Change ignites change. Remember that.