Midlife Musings: Amy Schmidt
Do you begin each day with the mindset that you are prepared to handle whatever might happen that day?
Do You Resist Or Embrace change?
“Change can be challenging, especially when you are wired to think or do things a certain way.”
I work hard to embrace it, but it can be challenging, especially when you are wired to think or do things a certain way.
As a person who has moved 11 times, being adaptable is key. I can remember walking into a meeting at school, not knowing anyone, and feeling as though the room was shrinking and I had this banner across my chest that says, “talk to me…I’m new.”
I can remember the day my husband came home from work and had that “Amy we need to talk look on his face..”. I knew that expression well and had a feeling my life was about to get turned upside down.
I was right.
The next two months were crazy, as I prepared for move number 10. And this was a big one. We were moving as a family to Germany.
The day had come. The infamous good-bye party.
Didn’t Know If I Was Ready To Take On Change:
I distinctly remember those good-byes that night, as they were some of the hardest I’d had to do at that point in my life. I can rewind and fast forward them in my mind like a movie, reel by reel, picturing what everyone was wearing, and the looks on people’s faces. And I can remember not making eye contact with my dear friends that night. I remember struggling to engage with them in conversation because we had to say good-bye.
Most of the friends at the party were from my tribe. They knew everything because confessions ran deep in this group of friends. I shared the good sex stories, the not-so-good ones, too. We shared the terrible fight stories, the yelling and ranting at my kids moments. They were the only ones who knew I hid a pack of cigs in the ice cream sandwich box in my freezer. I had moved nine times before, and considered myself an expert, but this move felt different, almost with a sense of permanence.
I felt grounded because I had planted my roots for five whole years, which seemed like a lifetime to me. I was used to moving every two years and I’d had special friendships, but these friendships I wasn’t ready to interrupt for a move to Germany. I didn’t know if I was ready to take on change.
“Remember, If you’re flexible you can bend but you’ll never break.”
Change Is Challenging:
As I get older, I see change as a chance to show myself that I can do hard things. Knowing that when I step into the change, and new challenges, that I’m helping myself to be stronger and more flexible. Flexibility, being adaptable, is a huge part of change. Remember, if you’re flexible you can bend but you’ll never break.
What Can You Learn From Change?
When I think about some of the changes that I have gone through lately, I can see the lessons that life was trying to teach me. I recently lost a dear friend. I had to sit back and reflect on this question: What is this moment teaching me? Now being a woman of faith, I feel that my conversation and connection with that friend a week before she passed, was a true act of God, and part of the plan. It was during this difficult time of processing how this could happen, that I realized there were certain aspects in my life that I needed to change.
I needed to realize that the moments that we have during this journey are precious, and we must invest our time wisely, as we don’t know how much time we truly have. And instead of planning for the future, I needed to change my trajectory a bit, and plan for the now, and be in the present.
Certainly, sometimes doing something different is scary, and challenging, but it also comes with so much good. Be willing to put yourself out there and just do it scared.
And don’t let what other people think bother you. I know that is easier said than done sometimes. But really, YOU are the one that has to live YOUR life. So get over worrying about what other people think.
5 Ways To Embrace Change:
“Forever changed is powerful. Embrace it. Take it one and CANNONBALL with confidence! “
Here are five suggestions that may allow you to embrace change and take on the challenges it presents with confidence.
- Accept that life is going to change. Change is inevitable. Don’t let fear stop you from moving forward. At midlife and beyond one of the gems is being able to move forward. Change is embracing personal growth and pulling that safety net aside.
- Open your mind to change. There are limitless possibilities when you open your mind to change. Try to experiment with the beauty of under-thinking rather than over-thinking situations.
- Restore, recharge and breathe. Be mindful of the anxiety that you may feel when something changes in your life. Circle back to that question: What lesson do I have to learn with this change? And what is the next step to move forward? When you can add a positive spin to it, it won’t look so daunting to you. In fact, it might just be something amazing!
- Change is just something new to you. Old ways won’t open new doors. Reflect on that saying and realize that change represents something new.
- You are stronger with change. As you navigate midlife and beyond, realize that you are stronger with every decision you make. It is simply a mindset shift – when you begin you embrace change, you feel empowered with the ‘new’. Embrace the new, and the new opportunities.
When we can navigate our journey by accepting change, we learn from it, and become better for experiencing it, change is no longer our enemy. It becomes our teacher.
Forever changed is powerful. Embrace it. Take it. And CANNONBALL with confidence!
About the Author:
Amy Schmidt is a podcaster, author, public speaker, blogger and founder of the brand, Fearlessly Facing Fifty™. She launched her business and brand six months before turning 50. Her mission is to encourage women over forty to push fear aside and find that hidden treasure of confidence, that may have been pushed aside for awhile and not let this time of life allow them to lose their identity.
Her work has been published in Grown and Flown, Scary Mommy, Today Parents, and many others. You can follow her on social media. Her instagram handle is: https://www.instagram.com/amy.k.schmidt/. Join her Face Book community: https://www.facebook.com/fearlesslyfacingfifty.net/. You can subscribe to her website and read her blog and find links to her podcast. https://fearlesslyfacingfifty.com/ Her podcasts are available on Apple, Spotify, SoundCloud, or simple Google the Fearlessly Facing Fifty Podcast. Amy loves to connect with her followers and encourages emails to amy@fearlesslyfacingfifty.com.
