About Change

Change is all about doing things differently. This may sound all too obvious, but most people who have tried to change something fundamental in their lives, however small, will know that old habits are tough to change. This is because habits (or behavioural patterns) are embedded in your way of thinking. The way we think and, consequently, the way we act has been developed and strengthened from childhood onwards. They have helped us throughout our lives to deal with the issues and problems that every human being faces. At some point in your life, however, you may find that the old patterns do not suffice anymore, or that they hold you back in reaching your goals.

So maybe you avoid trying out new things because of the risk to loose something in the process. And you may think: ‘this is the way I am, the way I was born, I’m too old to change that now’, or you may think: ‘it is normal to think like this, everyone would feel or act this way.’

Or, you may stop and think again: ‘was I really born with this habit? Has no-one ever changed the way they feel, think or act?’ Or: ‘does really everyone feel or act this way? Is it really ‘normal’?’

Change starts by challenging yourself, challenging the way you think and act. It’s not always easy to challenge yourself because when your brain has been conditioned to think in a certain way, it has forgotten how to open up other doors and windows onto different viewpoints. This is where I may come in. During the coaching sessions we will explore different ways of looking at things, sometimes through unusual questions and observations.

Exploring your habits and behavioural patterns, the way they help as well as hamper you in life, is an important step in the process of change. But only after this, the truly difficult step follows: how to actually change your ways and bring about the desired changes in your life. There are several methods and instruments I can provide to support you in this step of the process. However, it is important to realise that the only person who can really bring about change is you. And this simply means doing things differently. Nothing more and nothing less.

See About Sunflower Coaching and About Miriam Lindwer for more...