Change has an unusual way of affecting us.
For some, the concept of change may be a welcomed aspect of life.
For others, the mere thought of change can be unsettling and even distressing.
Although it’s easy to admit the positives around change, there are also associated feelings of despair, anxiety, and anger. These emotions are part of a larger force called resistance.
Humans naturally want comfortable circumstances to stay the same, but change is inevitable. The internal resistance to change may be what hurts the most.
But change doesn’t have to be painful.
Learning to recognize and deal with resistance, while rewiring the subconscious mind prepares a softer landing.
Recognize Resistance
Resistance comes in many shapes and sizes. It ranges from avoidance or passive-aggressive behavior to defiance, contempt, and hostility. It can be debilitating for those recovering from a crisis, or as simple as digging your heels during a change of routine.
If there is change, you may be afraid that you’ll lose control over your territory and “all that I’ve worked for,” or the possibility of losing face, having more work pressure, or showing incompetence.
Experiencing resistance is normal, but most people generally don’t resist change if they know that it’s for their best interest. If circumstances are enough to cause outright resistance, it often leads to a scarcity mindset and unhealthy thoughts and feelings.
Even with knowing the positives that change brings, such as knowledge, new experiences, and personal growth, we still feel resistance on a deep, subconscious level. That’s why learning how to work with the subconscious mind instead of against it, is a positive approach to controlling resistance to change.
Working With Your Subconscious
Your subconscious mind stores your habits and ‘comfort zones’ like a memory foam mattress fits your form. When you think about or do something outside of your normal behavioral pattern, your subconscious protects you by creating an uncomfortable feeling.
Recognizing the discomfort is part of your goal of working with your subconscious mind.
As professional speaker Brian Tracy says, “For you to grow, to get out of your comfort zone, you have to be willing to feel awkward and uncomfortable doing new things the first few times. If it’s worth doing well, it’s worth doing poorly until you get a feel for it until you develop a new comfort zone at a new, higher level of competence.”
You aren’t just a human; you are an agent of change within your life. You can expand your threshold of comfort by learning techniques to reprogram your subconscious. The more you allow yourself to work outside of your comfort, the more likely you are to poke, prod, and deal with internal resistance.
How to Deal With Resistance
Once you choose to deal with your resistance, your life becomes more meaningful. Allowing internal change as a result of tapping into your subconscious helps you focus on the person you want to be, while also inviting more opportunity.
Many studies show how repetition creates new pathways for accepting change in our subconscious. Affirmations are a very effective way of “convincing” your subconscious that you are capable of moving past resistance.
Here are five proven insights and affirmations for handling resistance challenges:
1. Learn to be flexible
Affirmation: I am open and flexible to new ideas.
Try something different every day, even if it’s brushing your teeth with the other hand. Learning to be flexible helps to rewire the mind in allowing things to flow more naturally rather than trying to control it
2. Reveal your strengths
Affirmation: I am strong enough to overcome resistance.
During the process of working through resistance, consider your strengths and how they can help you to explore options. If you tend to avert risk, then start by considering and researching the risk involved. When you’re ready, you can recruit help in making the change.
3. Consult a Coach
Affirmation: I am open to receiving guidance.
If you feel stuck, enlist a mentor, coach, or professional. Hypnotherapy is a way to help guide you through the processes while rewiring your mind to overcome the aversion to change. The hypnotherapist also helps you develop self-confidence to cope with the changes.
4. Acknowledge your fears
Affirmation: I know my fears, and I can control how I feel about them.
Explore the possible causes of resistance. Tap into the discomforts caused by your subconscious and be honest with yourself. Resistance is part of learning that something is ending, and the uncertainty afterward causes fear. Is it the change that you fear, or is it loss?
5. List your desired outcomes
Affirmation: I can see the positives that will come out of this change.
In my article about cultivating an abundance mindset, I talk about visualizing the outcome with positive thought. Make a list of desired outcomes as a result of the change and focus your intention on that.
Final Thoughts
The world can seem bleaker and more robotic without the fluctuations of change. Although we may enjoy monotony from time to time, without change, we limit the potential for personal growth and development, as well as opportunity and a little excitement.
Work with your subconscious mind to deal with resistance to change, and you’ll be one step closer to seeing things from a brighter perspective.