Make Change an Evolution, Not a Revolution

By: Amy Maricle

This is a guest post on Ariane de Bonvoisin’s blog: First 30 Days. You can read it here.

4 Comments

Tamara G. Suttle, M.Ed., LPC on December 4, 2013 at 8:38 am

Amy! I love this idea of “peeking around the corner” as an act of change! It’s true! And, that’s such a great image! Thanks for chunking down change into such tiny steps that we may realize we are already on our way – peeking around corners!

By the way, if you have an interest in writing a guest post for me on Private Practice from the Inside Out (now or later) based on how you’ve peeked around corners to grow your practice, I would love it! Let me know if you’re interested!
Reply
- Amy Johnson Maricle on December 4, 2013 at 5:11 pm
  
  Tamara: Thanks so much for reading. It’s true, I have really found with myself and my clients that we make more change than we ever give ourselves credit for. All of the predatory steps and mini-experiments are part of the process of change. Focusing on this can help us see our progress and encourage us to take the next steps. I definitely think this applies to building a private practice as well. I would love to write about it for your blog. All the best! Amy
  Reply
Laura Query on March 10, 2014 at 3:34 pm

I love the idea of “evolution, not revolution.” It’s something that can be a “go-to” affirmation when I need to be more mindful. I noticed the comment above about all of the small steps and mini-experiments that are part of the process of change. I think sometimes it is so very difficult to give ourselves credit for these small steps and changes because we feel we need witnesses or it needs to be very obvious or it doesn’t count. Kind of like “If a tree falls in a forest and no one is around to hear it, does it make a sound?” Sometimes we don’t even “hear” or feel these small changes or recognize them and their place in our process until we are much further down the path, much further in our evolution. Here’s where I feel that faith has played a huge part in my own process. Faith that as long as I am moving forward, it is enough. It doesn’t matter how much. As long as I’m not standing still…for too long. The process is often full of fits and starts and even some circling back to where we’ve been and then…finally rapid progression forward!

If courage is our value, then maybe it can be good enough that we are being brave? That we are in the arena trying and giving it our best shot? And hopefully we can find some folks who share that similar value who we can be on the journey with. And know that we aren’t alone. Maybe that can sustain us when we need to be so patient with the slow parts of our evolution?

I’m also thinking about the concept of “revolution” not only as in a radical change, but also the idea of “revolution” as in turning or following some prescribed course back to the original starting point. We can feel like we’re spinning in circles sometimes, right? But with faith and courage I think we can take comfort that we will come out of the spiral and continue moving forward.

In my evolution, I have felt sometimes very alone. If the process is going to be slow and non-linear, I feel deeply that we need to find meaningful connection to ourselves and others along the way. May the force be with us in our journeys. 🙂
Reply
- Amy Johnson Maricle on March 10, 2014 at 6:10 pm
  
  HI Laura:
  
  Thanks as always for your very thoughtful comments here.
  
  A long time ago someone told me that we revisit issues in a way that is akin to a spiral. I like this image. Rather than feeling that I am going in circles, I see that I am moving up and forward, even when I am revisiting an “old” issue. It makes sense that we have to revisit things as we get to new parts of our lives. In this way, I am not taking a step “back,” but rather reexamining something old in a new way.
  
  I like your point about having a witness. Especially if we feel a bit unhinged, little changes can feel more real and potent when they are shared. It’s reassuring. Connecting with people who understand your journey can be validating, but also grounding. Listening to yourself about who is good for you in this way is so key. Thanks for that important point!
  
  Happy connecting!
  Amy
  Reply