I have a lot of ideas on the topic of transformation. I have experience in transforming a variety of things in my life, personally and professionally. It is a little overwhelming to try to sort the ideas out.
I’ve chosen to start with ideas on change because that is at the heart of any transformation. Transformation is change, from one thing into another. My ideas are specifically related to personal transformation and change, but I would guess they could apply to other areas more professional also.
I have written on change before, but this time I want to focus on changing a person. I read a book a long time ago called People Types and Tiger Stripes. In that book the author stated that a person’s personality was as changeable as a tiger’s stripes, meaning it was not. Once you are who you are, you are who you are. Personality develops over time for sure, but her assertion was that by the time we are through adolescence, we are stuck with our personality, that people cannot change.
Dr. Joe Dispenza disagrees, though he does understand how this seems to be true. In the series we are watching on Gaia TV, hosted by Dr. Joe, called Rewired, he talks about how personality is developed over time. He talks about how we have experiences in life, and we tend to react to them emotionally. We hold onto those emotions and they turn into a mood. If we hold onto the mood, it turns into a temperament. If we keep holding onto the emotions, it becomes our personality. So, by the time we are through adolescence, we have had a lot of experiences, and we are holding onto the emotions created in them, and this has become our personality.
The author of that book, about the tiger stripes, has a valid point. Once we have held onto those emotions for so long, they are very difficult to change. It is hard to let go of something we have held onto and created our identity around to become something new. But I disagree with her and agree with Dr. Joe. It can be done. That is what Rewired is about, changing that wired response to life that has become our personality.
Change is hard. There is no quick fix. However, keep in mind that we are always changing. Every choice we make has the potential to change our future. Every time we choose something different from what we would typically choose, we are transforming and changing ourselves into a different person. Through tiny choices and decisions we evolve. Only humans can do this within a single lifetime. Other species take generations to evolve. One human can evolve themselves in one lifetime. That is not necessarily good or bad. Some of the evolution that has taken place in some humans is not good for anyone, including that human. It is part of their journey though, and so it is their learning as a soul that benefits in some way.
Consider how old you are. I am about to turn 54 in a few months. It has taken nearly 54 years for me to become who I am today. If who I want to be is not who I am, will it take 54 years to become someone else? The answer is “unknown, but probably not.” Getting here was an evolution that took that many years. I had teachers and catalysts to change throughout my life. I had support and cheerleaders, coaches and therapists. I also say that who I am isn’t that far from who I have always been trying to be. It took 54 years to get here, but where I was going was always here. It’s not about where I get to in the end. It is about the journey and all of the experiences along the way that brought me here. I would change none of it, painful as a lot of it was.
I guess the bottom line on change is this, it happens. In terms of transformation, that is also happening. Whether slowly or seemingly over night, it is always happening, constantly. Yes, personalities can change, if you want them to change. You have to want them to, and you have to create that change. Because I was born unhappy with who I was, I have always been seeking to be someone else. From my earliest memory, I have not wanted to be myself, but someone else. My journey has been to find out who I really am, and become myself, not turn myself into someone else. I am finally here. I have become myself, and I realize that I have always been me. That who I am is someone who is always evolving, becoming, transforming into a newer version of me.
There is a lot more to that story, which I will go into in future articles, but for now, have faith. Change is happening for all of us. All we have to do is embrace the possibilities of it, and we will evolve. We can do this! It doesn’t have to be scary. Change is always happening. If we embrace it, it is a lot less scary.
-Namaste