* Image courtesy of GIS and AOL’s CDN
Update: Welcome Carnival of Career Intensity readers! Thanks to Dave for including this post in the Labor Day carnival.
I’m adding a new category to my blog, titled “Winds of Change”. I could have just called it “Change”, but that’s no fun 
(in case you want to know where I got it from, it’s a name of a song I like). Change is inevitable, and I’ve learned a great deal (and still have much to learn), about embracing change instead of fighting to defend the mediocre status quo. Carly Fiorina gave a great talk about change at Stanford 3 months ago, and why sometimes leaders get “carried out on their shields” because change is difficult! I highly recommend listening to her talk, if you don’t have time, make time, I promise you will not regret it 
So without further ado, I wanted to share a good article I read about change.
Begetting Change: Same Choices, Same Results
Repeated bouts of adversity are an unavoidable aspect of human existence. We battle against our inner struggles or outer world forces, and in many cases, we emerge on the opposite side of struggle stronger and better equipped to cope with the challenges yet to come. However, we can occasionally encounter trials that seem utterly hopeless. We strike at them with all of our creativity and perseverance, hoping desperately to bring about change, only to meet with the same results as always. Our first instinct in such situations is often to push harder against the seemingly immovable obstruction before us, assuming that this time we will be met with a different outcome. But staying power and stamina net us little when the same choices consistently garner the same results. A change in perspective, behavior, or response can do so much more to help us move past points where no amount of effort seems sufficient to overcome the difficulties before us.
Whether our intention is to change ourselves or some element of the world around us, we cannot simply wish for transformation or hope that our lives will be altered through circumstance. If our patterns of thought and behavior remain unchanged, our lives will continue to unfold much as they have previously. Patterns in which fruitless efforts prevail can be overcome with self examination and courage. It is our bravery that allows us to question the choices we have made thus far and to channel our effort into innovation. Asking questions and making small adjustments to your thought processes and behaviors will help you discover what works, so you can leave that which does not work behind you. To break free from those unconscious patterns that have long held sway over your actions and reactions, you will likely have to challenge your assumptions on a most basic level. You must accept once and for all that your beliefs with regard to cause and effect may no longer be in accordance with your needs.
Stagnation is often a sign that great changes are on the horizon. Courting the change you wish to see in yourself and in the world around you is a matter of acknowledging that only change begets change. The results you so ardently want to realize are well within the realm of possibility, and you need only step away from the well-worn circular path to explore the untried paths that lie beyond it.
Great lesson here. Sometimes, brute-force techniques aren’t the most efficient way to solve a problem. It’s always best to remain open to other possible problem solving methods. Acknowledging you have made a mistake (or could have done something better) is the first step, before making incremental adjustments to your course. When you feel growth stalling, then you know you have to actively seek out change, for the same choice will return you the same results. Take charge of your destiny.
What I’ve found true for myself, if you don’t take charge of your life, others will run your life for you. It’s your own responsibility to ensure that you end up where you want to be. If you don’t like where you end up, you only have yourself to blame.