I picked up the pen to jot down a note to myself, instead of the original prompt I wrote:

‘No, I’m not doing this …’ 

It was a message from my subliminal self saying it was time for something different.

The idea of doing the same thing for the same result, helping others, wasn’t appealing, there was the paradox. After all, helping others is how I established my business all those years ago. I’d now been challenged by change … I should begin doing things for myself, I thought.

Was I learning?

After all? I’d been following the same routine these past ten years and I’d convinced myself it was the correct way to go. I’d even made a point of guiding all who listened to heed the value of change …  by listening ‘not a jot’ to my inner voice, I continued to adhere to the same old routine …

Now, was it time for a wake-up call? 

If my path was to be the same and I expected a different result then my actions needed to change.

I couldn’t help but feel a sense of liberation as I found the telephone …

‘Hi Bill, Charlie here … what’s for breakfast next Tuesday?’

After our conversation, I realised that the path to contentment was understanding. I’d learned that change was something to embrace as a catalyst for new things. An unexpected smile, the opportunity for conversation, shared thoughts.

OK, the subject of the ‘phone call was hardly a game-changer. My moment of change was a question to confirm a colleague’s breakfast preference. We were meeting the following week and I would usually have sent a mail or text. Instead, I chose change and something that was making a small difference, as it turns out … for both of us.

‘Thanks for the call, I’d completely forgotten Charlie, appreciated. Let’s catch up for a one to one next week.’

Did my simple act make a significant impact? No, I thought not. For me, it was something I needed to do. To qualify my understanding of the inspiration that simple change invokes was enough.

Bill and I met up for a chat right after breakfast the following week. It seems my innocuous call hit a chord. Unknown to me, at the time we spoke on the telephone he was contending with a personal loss. 

Significant impact? 

I was unaware of my friend’s challenges, but in his own words, ‘that simple act of kindness, a call from a friend … it’s priceless and was very much appreciated.’

Embrace the opportunity of change, ‘business is personal.’