Adapting to Gradual Change

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Stephen Lesavich, PhD · Adapting To Gradual Change

Are you recognizing gradual change occurring in your life?

Let me tell you another true story.

The city I live in is considering closing several public grade schools, middle schools and one high-school due to declining enrollment. Luckily, the high-school I attended was not on the closing list.

When I was going to school, there were Jr. high schools instead of middle schools.

The public grade school and Jr. high school I attended, which is now a middle school are on the closings list.

My grade school and Jr. high were named after dead presidents, Grant and Washington.

The grade school I attended was just three blocks from my house and the Jr. high about one mile away. Both within walking distance.

There has been a dramatic shift in the number of students in some neighborhoods of the city including my old neighborhood.

In the neighborhood I grew up in, in just one square block, there were 13 households with 37 children.

There were similar numbers of children in other blocks around my old neighborhood.

My dad was a carpenter and he built the house I grew up in. The roots of my house in my old neighborhood were blue. It was a blue-collar neighborhood.

My mom lived in that house until she passed away a few years ago. My mom was one of just three households remaining of the original 13 with the same adult parents that were living there when I was kid.

When my mom passed away, in that same one square block I grew up in, in the same 13 houses, there were just three school aged children. Three.

Two of these three children were attending a private school, with just one child attending a public school.

The changes in my old neighborhood represent cycles of gradual change and necessary transitions.

The gradual changes included the children growing up, becoming adults and moving away, their parents aging and passing away, the houses of the original households being sold to new owners with no children or smaller numbers of children.

This gradual cycle of change of the declining enrollments resulted in the necessary transition of closing schools.

Such cycles of gradual change and transitions are occurring in your own life.

How do you learn to adapt to gradual change in your own life in a positive way?

You recognize have been unaware of the gradual changes occurring in your life. In this stage gradual changes are often incremental, happening in small steps over longer periods of time. You may not recognize gradual patterns of change as they slowly occur in your life. Since the changes are occurring slowly, you may just adapt to them as they occur without a full conscious awareness of the change going on. For example, for me in in my old neighborhood, there were children of many different ages that became adults and moved away, their parent passed away and the original houses were sold at many different times over several decades. As I was one of the children who moved away, I was unaware of all the gradual changes that had occurred in my old neighborhood. In your own life, you have been unaware of the gradual changes occurring in personal life. Gradual changes such as your relationship with your spouse, as you may be growing apart from each other due to changes in sexual dynamics, communication patterns, emotional connections, etc., you may have gained a significant amount of weight, due to gradual changes in dietary and exercise habits, etc. In your professional life you may have been unaware that your satisfaction with your own job was decreasing, your current position was becoming obsolete due to changes in technology, sales and market conditions, etc.
You suddenly become aware of the gradual changes that occurred in your life. In this stage, you are suddenly triggered into a new awareness. You abruptly become fully conscious and cognizant of subtle and gradual shifts that are occurring in the various aspects of your life and now know you need to make an immediate positive change. For example, for me in my old neighborhood, I abruptly became fully aware of all the gradual changes that had occurred over decades when my mom passed away and I had to put her house, the house I grew up in, up for sale. All of the people, except for two women in the eighties, mothers of the children I grew up with were long gone. In your own life, you suddenly become fully aware that you need to have positive solutions to the gradual changes and any adversity it has caused in your life. You now forced to step back and closely examine the gradual change that has occurred with your own personal habits, including your own physical and mental well-being, your personal relationships, your work environment, your professional relationships, etc.
You adapt in a positive way to the gradual changes that occurred in your life. In this stage, you embrace gradual change as a natural part of life. You develop an adaptive mindset for change. For example, for me in my old neighborhood, we sold the house I grew up in after my mom passed away to a young couple who were expecting their first child. Selling my mom’s house ended a life cycle for me in my old neighborhood and started a new cycle with new participates without me. In your life, take responsibility for who and where you are right now in your life. Ask yourself questions about your own life, values, and priorities. For example, ask yourself, “What do I want in my life right now? What are my own physical, emotional, psychological, sexual and spiritual values right now? How have they change over time? What are my own priorities right now?” Such questions prompt self-reflection and help you notice any shift in your perspectives or aspirations during the gradual change period. Reflect on your own personal and professional life, relationships, habits, and experiences that occurred during the gradual change period. Pay close attention to all changes in your own thoughts, emotions, and behaviors that occurred during the gradual change period. Schedule regular check-ins with yourself to assess various aspects of your life. Stay informed about developments in your own personal life, societal changes, professional life, advancements in technology, etc. This can help you recognize gradual shifts in your environment and respond to them in a positive, confident, pro-active way from an empowered state.