reinvention | Words For Hire

The Language of Reinvention

September 14, 2009 by Karen Swim

: Image by David Reece via Flickr

This month there has been a focus on reinvention. It was not planned, but somehow the theme seemed to take on life of it’s own. An unplanned video seemed to spark a line of thought that won’t let go, just yet.

Have you ever noticed how you adjust your language when addressing different groups? While you may use your native tongue there are nuances. You may have a work language that allows you to communicate with colleagues that adjusts slightly when speaking with clients or your boss. You have a different language with your spouse than with your children. If you travel even domestically you may adjust your language for the region.

Reinvention has a language too and your words can move you toward action or inhibit your progress. The language of reinvention is:

Clear. You are not maybe, possibly thinking of changing, you are doing it. You state clear objectives even if the map to achieve them is still unformed.
Hopeful. The process of change begins with a belief that you can. Throughout the journey you must keep this belief alive, especially in the face of challenge, with language that is positive.
Adventurous. Your language embraces possibilities, it is open and adventurous and speaks of what can be done rather than focusing on barriers. Joanna Young has an excellent 3 part series going on the Language of Possibility.
New. When reinventing, especially if casting off unwanted behavior or circumstances choose new language to replace your old perspective.
Grateful. Your language reflects gratitude for the good in your life, which keeps you on balance and able to take action on the things that need changing.
Energetic. Your words lift you rather than pull you down. They spur you on to the finish with buoyancy.

You will notice that this new language is all about C-H-A-N-G-E. If we change our language, our actions will follow.

Have you ever found yourself speaking a language that put up barriers to change? How did you work though it?

Reinvention 2.0 – My Story

September 3, 2009 by Karen Swim

This is Part II of my story. If you missed Part I, you can read it here.

Psychologists and grief counselors recommend not making any major life changes in the first year following a loss. I made it one month. I packed up my home in a weekend, rented a monster moving truck (seriously the thing was like a meat packing truck) and drove myself to Michigan. Along the way I prayed for all others on the road occasionally yelling warnings to move out of the crazy lady’s way. One of my best friends was moving too (her husband’s job relocated) and I drove our collective belongs and furniture while she wisely flew on a plan.

I needed time to heal but also needed money so I took a non-management position with a clinical laboratory. By week four, I was on my third boss and second reorganization. Yea, this was going to be fun. I committed to myself to stick it out one year, and I made it barely.

So what was a now 40 year old widow in a new city going to do? Well, start a business of course! . I went to the library and checked out bundles of book. I filled notebooks with ideas and plans. I researched, studied and soaked up knowledge from seasoned business owners.

: Image via Wikipedia

I wrote a business plan and took it to the Small Business Administration (SBA). I had decided I would start a pet sitting business and even got my animal CPR certification.

On one trip to the library, I stumbled across a book about starting a writing business. I honestly had not considered that I could combine writing and business. I had always loved writing and dreamed of writing a book, but a writing business? Armed with this knowledge, I quickly changed course and made a new business plan. I used a DIY website and created a web presence one Friday and by that afternoon had my first client.

So, why this story and why now? As we enter the fourth quarter of a year that has been filled with change, many of you are considering your own reinvention. You may be feeling the need to stretch yourself or completely change course. Perhaps your friends and family are warning you that now is not the time for risk or maybe YOU are allowing fear to hold you back.

I am sharing my story so that you will know that it is possible to not only survive your challenges but thrive!

To help you in your own reinvention, allow me to share 5 Things that I learned:

Accept that life is different. It is so easy to get stuck mourning what is gone and cannot be resurrected. A major life change is exactly that, a change. Do not waste time wishing for what you can no longer have. Cherish that time in your heart and keep moving forward.
Build on your foundation. Change is not a loss of all you’ve collected along the way. I had never been a professional writer but I had deep expertise in business, healthcare and marketing. I used what I knew as I learned what I did not.
Accept that your new chapter is NEW! Do not compare your new job, life, etc to your old one. Embrace where you are right now and create your new life in the moment.
Know that life changes. We make small reinventions almost daily because life is not static. I only wish that we each had a fixed allotment of challenges in life, because surely I would be done!
Decide to be happy. No matter what life deals you, you are completely in charge of your reaction. I will never forget when a friend asked me if I was happy living in Michigan. The question struck me as odd. Of course I was happy because I chose happiness every day. It did not matter where I lived, I would bloom where planted because that was my choice.

I did not choose the circumstances that brought me to the here and now but I always knew I had a choice. I could choose victim or victor at every turn. I was not forced into reinvention I chose it!

Are you facing change in your own life? What are you finding the most challenging?

Reinvention 1.0 – My Story

September 2, 2009 by Karen Swim

: Image by 10 Ninjas Steve via Flickr

Written by Karen D. Swim

This is Part I in a two part story.

Several years ago, I had the life I wanted. I had a wonderful husband, a home I loved and a career that challenged and stimulated me. I was happy. Little did I know it was all about to change.

The job that I loved reorganized and to keep my position I would have to move from California to New Jersey. I never considered it (nothing against New Jersey) and opted to take a package. The VP of our department flew out to talk me out of it but I was steadfast in my commitment to embrace the unknown. If someone had told me the details of that unknown, I would have promptly hidden under the bed. I was going to take time off and just breathe for a few months. I had no idea how important my decision would be.

My last day of work, I turned in my company car, picked up my first personal car in 7 years and happily waved good-bye. That night, my husband, who had been healthy showed the first sign of an illness which would go undiagnosed for a year.

In between doctor appointments to diagnose my husband’s various symptoms, still mild enough that he could work, I joyfully embraced being a housewife. I had never been away from work for more than a week or two. I had decided to take 6 months off before rejoining the work force. In the first two months, 9/11 happened, one of my best friends was declining from Leukemia and my husband began having debilitating headaches that prevented us both from sleeping.

By the time I reached the end of my planned time off my youngest brother in-law had been diagnosed with Leukemia, my best friend passed away, another best friend was diagnosed with breast cancer and my husband was diagnosed with Lung Cancer that had spread to the brain. Work was the last thing on my mind!

I was off work for 2 ½ years and we lived off our savings. The medical bills mounted as my husband’s cancer spread to the spine paralyzing him from the waist down. Yet, our house was not one of doom and gloom but hope and joy. My brother in law passed away and a few months later my husband joined him.

In the last month of my husband’s life I had interviewed for and won a job as an Oncology Product Manager. I did not want to leave my husband’s side but we needed money. I never had to make that decision and was with him until his death.

So at 39, I found myself widowed, childless and broke. Not exactly, the way I had planned to enter midlife.

In the midst of my grief, I knew that I had no choice but to move forward. Running marathons had taught me to just put one foot in front of the other and with God’s help I did precisely that.

I had not invited reinvention but there it was right in front of me. I did not feel up to the task. I had simply soldiered on for three years never realizing that my life was starting to resemble Job’s. And now I was sad, tired and not in the mood for change. But change I did.

I rescinded the acceptance of the job offer and instead relocated to Michigan to connect with my biological family. I called a recruiter, interviewed for one job and luckily for me I got it. I did not have the energy to go on multiple interviews. After a year, I was stable enough to launch Reinvention Part II.

If you’ve made it this far, thank you! Tomorrow, I’ll give you part II along with some of the life lessons I learned. I hope that through my experience I can offer you the wisdom I gained and the courage to face your own new chapter. Thanks for reading and if you think it will help someone else, please pass it along.