Positive Change, Big Or Small, Is Still Positive!

About five years ago, my wife and I moved from Chicago to Atlanta. One of the motivations for leaving Chicago after nineteen fantastic years was to escape the cold winters and the snow. 

The first winter in Atlanta was amazing! No bitter cold, no more shoveling the driveway to get rid of mounds of snow! I loved it, every minute of it.

 That winter, however, to my shock, I heard person after person complaining (sometimes even wailing!) about how cold it was! At first, I thought they were kidding, but they weren't.

I remember telling several people that they didn't know what cold was...and that they would never hear me complaining about it being cold in the wintertime in Atlanta.

Fast forward two winters later, my third one in Georgia. 

All of a sudden, I began to hear myself complain about the cold weather and the biting chill from the wind. When I realized what was happening, I began to laugh at how quickly I had begun to take the much warmer Atlanta winters for granted.

After all, when it hit 32 degrees my first winter in Atlanta, that was pretty darn warm, compared to Chicago.

How did 32 degrees turn into "Wow, this is bitter cold!"?

I guess the answer is that when things improve, when we get what we want, it's easy for our excitement and gratitude to lose ground.

We begin wanting even more. Our improved circumstances from a few months ago aren't new and shiny anymore. The luster is fading. So, we forget how things were and how much better they are now. We want even more.

Now, there's nothing wrong with wanting more; that's what fuels progress.

But, why not remember how much better things are than they were a short time ago?

That promotion last year? Instead of it seeming like so far away and not good enough now, celebrate it again! Luxuriate in it!

The improved relationship? Celebrate the small changes and improvement and give them the status they deserve. Positive change, no matter the degree, is still positive.

Use that positive energy to create something even better. Use the gratitude for recent improvements to keep the wind in your sails while heading for sunnier ports. You'll get there faster and enjoy the trip so much more.

http://www.alanallard.com  Alan is a consultant, executive coach and speaker.