At 43, I’m Learning to Be Enough: Sitting with Discomfort in Seasons of Change

Storm over grasslands

The Instinct to Pivot

I celebrated a birthday recently. I feel like at present, I am enough and I have enough- I don’t need a new challenge, or job, or hobby. I need to be patient in this season of life and not seek change even if some things are uncomfortable or uncertain to me, I don’t typically deal with the unknown very well. Historically, if I have felt uncomfortable or uncertain I make a change- I have switched jobs three times in six years. Both James and Jackie would add that I’m also not very patient.

Learning to Sit with Discomfort

I feel like I am at an inflection point, where it is harder for me to sit through discomfort, but I think that is a lesson I need to learn right now. Additionally, I should be grateful to be in a place where I’m not just looking for what is next. Not every season of life can be solved by making a change- no matter how many changes I make Mom will still have Alzheimer’s. So, at 43 I’m teaching myself to get more comfortable with being uncomfortable and with uncertainty.

6 Leadership Lessons from Recovery

I am actually giving a presentation at work this week on this topic. What I have learned from my stroke:

• Clarity beats certainty (which I need to remind myself in this unknown season of life).

• Progress beats perfection (building better coping mechanisms helps me manage through uncertainty better).

• Connection beats isolation (accepting help is a leadership skill, the strongest leaders don’t carry the biggest load).   

• Curiosity beats fear (what can you learn from uncertainty?).

• Delegation creates capacity (you have to hold space for growth).

• You don’t need to know the entire journey before taking the first step.

Thriving Beyond the Unknown

My goal is to become the kind of person who can thrive despite uncertainty. Stay tuned for how it goes…

Any suggestions on how you have dealt with this?