Change was always good to me.  Even if it did not seem for the better it always proved later to be good. But today was a real bad day, I had to give away my BMW 520 for a few green bills. I am truly sad.

“Business is change, and Change is business” was a common Consultant line, and it was applied to private life too –  divorce rate went up. Even in politics “Change” become for a short while a succesful mantra – but tellingly in the second term the slogan was ironically “keep the Change” (I am aware of the double meaning). I loved to change continents, to change countries, to change jobs, to change projects, to change assignments. I accepted and was never sad changing relationships. I felt at times like a wanderer through life. You give back keys – one by one all keys – until you board a plane. It must be a character deficit but I remember fondly the houses I lived in, the places I worked and the cars I drove – more than my relationships. Although the best-selling book “Seven Habits of Highly Effective People” has been my mantra for many years I still cling on something stable. Respectfully, I added “Welcome Change” as another habit which I believe effective people share. Truly effective people continually seek opportunities to improve business, and in private life, through change.

Being a long-time advocate of change, I have always encouraged people to question what they see and  do and some not-so-successful programs and procedures; then make changes to improve results for the future.  Without the willingness, more so, the eagerness to change, nothing improves.  The status quo should never be good enough; no matter how good it is.

Today, our world is far more complicated and sophisticated than it was just a few years ago. Many bright young people start questioning the way things are done and contributing fresh new ideas to improve stale old procedures.  Before the day of the office computer, (no, dinosaurs weren’t walking the earth) most of us worked on  IBM 3270 terminals  (many of you have probably never seen one). I developed Software for mainframes.  Before the personal computer, we had no acceptable way to maintain data bases and procedures, and we had tapes galore. Computers, fax machines, cell phones, and the Internet changed our lives and the way we conduct business.

Creating a change-friendly atmosphere, however,  requires that we more often put their personal preferences in favor of the new emanating from the big Change. For some old-timers, this is very difficult. It wasn’t until I de-boarded all those  planes I used too to catch. That was a big change, no pressure and deadlines no new challenges and escalation anymore.

For the most part, I like the direction that my life is going towards retiring, but I miss things once they are gone. I wish I was back in my projects where I had responsibilities, and life was structured by escalation. I miss the colleagues I used to have and the places I used to live.  I miss those changes in the past and dread those changes in the future.

People generally like the idea of change, but they really hate the effort that goes along with it. The idea of change brings with it feelings of hope, opportunity and the promise that things can get better. But sometimes it can be hard work and require a lot of perseverance. If I’m going to provide any sage advice here, I should probably suggest that it’s a good idea to make changes as early as possible – long before some trigger event forces you to have to do it in a panic. The problem, of course, is that there’s never a good time to introduce change. “We’re just too busy right now. As soon as we get through this patch, we’ll change things up.” Things don’t slow down, however, and it never seems like there’s a good opportunity to take the plunge. The reality is, you eventually have to, so the sooner the better; because the longer you leave it, the more complicated it gets. So I prepare. Here’s my  list of the top 6 things I used to guide my retirement go well:

  •  Define and articulate your objectives
  • Find your internal  archetypes to guide me
  • Get an Early Victory
  • Don’t try to do too much at once
  • Choose Wisely: It has to be easy to use
  • It comes down to follow up

I embraced change and than this. I was not prepared to this.

pic_me2012 My old BMW was rear-ended by some fool and no sense to repair the car anymore. This car never let me down, no big repairs and even two weeks ago it run smoothly like clock. I planed to keep it for good.  I’ve had this car for almost 13 years now and put more than 100k miles on it. It reminds me of so many experiences and memories.  I think people get attached to cars because they spend a lot of time in them typically. Also, individual cars all have their personality quirks that make them unique, kind of like people. If we didn’t think they had a personality why would we bother to talk to them? I am not saying have a whole conversation but maybe an occasional word of encouragement or some patting.   Some people even name their cars! People become emotionally attached to their vehicles, kind of like a relationship with an old significant other. You know the in’s and out’s of your Ex just like your old car. Sometimes relationships last forever, especially if you’ve made the right investments to keep it running smoothly. On the other hand, sometimes it is just necessary to move on.

Have I become like the old people love to b..tch about changing to the worse while talking about how the old way was so much better.