Visual Framework for Change - Introduction

Change is constant.

“This too shall pass.” Life is like a motion picture, not a static snapshot.

Changes form patterns and often occur in a particular sequence. We can anticipate them with comfort and participate with awareness when we have a framework for understanding change.

We experience change as universal (it happens to everybody at some point) or personal (I am the only one having to change right now). Our responses to change are affected by these two perspectives.

Essence experiences life from a universal, or global, perspective. Essence reflects one’s soul, with the qualities of acceptance, adaptability, love, creativity, and wisdom. We are coming from essence when we feel centered and expansive. We know ourselves to be an integral part of the experience, like a ripple in the ocean. This nonpersonal perspective allows us to be fully present and engaged, because the sense of connection and support infuses the process.

Ego engages life from the personal perspective. accomplishment, and possessions. We are engaged in the ego when we feel isolated and limited.

The clearest difference between ego and essence is presence. When challenged, ego can easily dive into the past and come up with assorted fears, or skip forward to the future and become immersed in worry. Essence approaches the challenge by remaining focused on the present moment and staying attuned to the opportunities.

Ego will clamor for drama and complexity in its need for background information (“Why is this happening to me?”); confirm its stance with rationalizations (“I can’t help it; I have no choice”); and insist on guarantees (“What if . . .?” and “What then?”).

Essence will be guided by congruity, which is the state where feeling (heart), logic (mind), and action (opportunity) are in agreement. As a result, essence exhibits the serenity that comes from a basic trust in process and an appreciation of simplicity.

In the face of change, the simplest approach is often the most effective. Be still, watch for an opening in awareness or opportunity, and then act with integrity.