New Beginnings
And this is how this series on transitions ends, just as the transition from the Neutral Zone to New Beginnings ends, not with a bang but with a gradual sense of clarity. If the Neutral Zone is a swamp, you …
Transitions
Keep vs. Cast Off
When you are coming through your transition, when you know where you want to go and are tangibly closer, when you feel you are almost near enough to touch it, you will realize some things about your things: There are …
Knowing Where You Want to Go
Let’s say you know where you are. And you have a good map and a reliable compass. But you don’t know where you want to go. If someone asked, all you would be able to answer is, “Not here.” ‘Not …
Navigating the Swamp
I’m struggling to write about how to navigate the swamp, because it’s such an intensely personal experience, much more so than YMMV. What it feels like, how long it lasts, the questions that pester like mosquitos—all of it comes from …
The Swamp
The Swamp calls the shots. The Swamp works on its own time, not ours, and in its own way, not ours. How long we spend in The Swamp is usually determined by how willing we are to honor The Swamp. …
Renaming The Neutral Zone
William Bridges’ model and his book label the phase between Endings and New Beginnings, ‘The Neutral Zone.’ ‘The Neutral Zone’ is such a clean and clinical term, midway between positive and negative. I think Bridges wimped out by giving such …
Three Phases of Transition
William Bridges wrote Transitions: Making Sense of Life’s Changes. It’s a slim book, only 159 pages. But it holds a perspective that has helped me navigate many transitions, over many years. Bridges distinguishes between change and transition. Change is the …
Navigating Transitions
I’m renaming this new series. Instead of ‘Managing Transitions,’ I want to call it ‘Navigating Transitions.’ ‘Navigating’ is a more accurate label for the behavior required. ‘Managing’ implies that the things being managed are under your control. But often, during …
Transition to Transitions
I write these blog posts in a yellow composition notebook, then type them up. Last Saturday I ran out of pages. Before I start a new notebook—this next one is black—I look through the old one. I want to make …