How to Create the Change You Want to See

“Setting an example is not the main means of influencing another, it is the only means.”

-Albert Einstein

Take a moment and look around the world you live in – in your home, in your community, in your country, in the world. What do you see? Do you like what you see? Are there aspects you would like to see improve?

Whether in your own life or in the context of the world, most likely you know of something that you would like to change.  It could be the work situation you are in or it could be how a certain group of people are treated. Whatever it is that you wish to change, today I’d like for you to realize that you can make positive change happen in the world.  Yes, you, simple one person. Some may shake their head and brush this idea aside, but I adamantly and wholeheartedly believe that each of us can make the positive change we want to see in our lives and yes, even the world.

Here’s how:

1. Lead by Example
As Gandhi reminds us,"[We] must be the change [we] wish to see in the world." The lives we lead, the decisions we make, the actions we partake in must mimic the world we wish to live in whether it’s the behavior we want to model for our children, the tough decision we want others to realize they too can make or being the sole person in your community to stand up for something that must be changed in the government.

“Nothing is so contagious as example; and we never do any great good or evil which does not produce its like.” Francois de la Rochefoucauld

2. Be Patient with Baby Steps
Gaining the confidence and convincing those around you that a change is possible takes time, so as you go about your life simply leading by example (which trust me, is very significant), be patient. It will take time for people to trust that you may just be on to something. I can pretty much guarantee it won’t take weeks and maybe not even months, but instead years depending upon what you are doing, so be patient and in the meantime find peace of mind in knowing that you are living in such a way that sits well with your conscious.

"Know what's weird? Day by day, nothing seems to change, but pretty soon... everything's different." - Calvin from Calvin & Hobbes

3. Remain Resolute
Stay focused. In knowing why you want the change you seek, you will be able to remain focused and not be persuaded to step off course. So be clear about your intentions, if only to yourself at first.

“Example moves the world more than doctrine.” –Arthur Miller

4. Remember Your Power

Be reminded when you begin to doubt that people essentially want to do whatever brings them comfort and acceptance, but it takes a handful of leaders to lead them in the right direction. One person has so much power, and as long as they use their powers for good, so many amazing and wonderful things can materialize even when so many may have once thought it impossible.

“Example has more followers than reason.” -Christian Nevell Bovee

5. Celebrate Success

You deserve it. Need I say more?

Believe it or not, it really only involves these four (plus the celebratory fifth) simple steps. Gandhi was a tremendous believer in the idea that those involved with social change must simplify their lives so that they could remain focused, so too should we when we are trying to see change in our lives. So whether you want to change the situation you are currently involved with – work, a relationship, finances, etc – or change the cultural mindset, first be determined to live in such a way that embodies what you seek, then simply take determined baby steps vowing not to waver, and lastly always keep in mind how powerful you really are.  In time you will be amazed. 

Images: (1) Sebastian (2) Vogue and Coffee  (3)  classic-actually)