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Everyone Loves a Good Story; What’s Yours?

Last Thursday night, I was overwhelmed and my heart was full. More than a hundred people turned out to my little corner of the world to welcome my story and help me celebrate a milestone.

There were old friends and new ones, family members, and patients too. There were lots of hugs, lots of laughs, and,  of course, a few tears.

Calling myself an author is a journey that has just begun, but the change is starting to feel more real, thanks to all of you who are reading my story. Well, it’s really thirty-four short stories because you know I always have a lot to say, and this kind of change doesn’t come along in one fell swoop!

Becoming an author, not to mention positively altered, takes effort, time, reflection, and bursts of unapologetic courage.

Change is tough. We humans struggle with it. Just ask a little league coach who tries to teach kids how to catch a ball or a business coach who strives to turn a company around.

The stats aren’t great. Otherwise, we’d all be professional baseball players and work wouldn’t be called work. In fact, about 70 percent of change initiatives fail in the workplace. But what we humans have in spades is aspirations, desires, and dreams.

This is the stuff of great change. It’s the engine. And you know what? Stories help people change. They see themselves in others’ stories about adversity and how they overcame.

Writing my book was ten years in the making. But it started one day at a time, one journal entry at a time, one painful lesson at a time, and one big laugh-at-yourself moment at a time.

A dream that started in the back of my head and eventually made its way forward and began to drum its fingers at me until I couldn’t ignore it anymore.

What change would you like to unapologetically pursue in your life? What might you tackle one tiny bite or journal entry at a time? You’ve heard the famous quote by Desmond Tutu:

“There’s only one way to eat an elephant: a bite at a time.” He meant that life could seem daunting and overwhelming, but even the impossible can be accomplished gradually by taking on a little bit at a time.

Change starts with you, but it doesn’t have to happen overnight. Dream big, start small, and stick with it. Don’t let anyone tell you no or that you can’t do something positive for yourself and for others.

How will you figuratively or literally write your story?  Remember, you can write yourself into any plot you want, but don’t forget to make yourself the superhero.

Be positively altered,

Dr. Cindy

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