Wazzup Pilipinas!
This weekend, I celebrated my birthday. Another fruitful year of my life has passed… a year of necessary endings and meaningful beginnings, meeting new friends and partners, traveling to new places, and motivating and empowering more of my fellow Filipinos. As I turn the page of a new chapter in my life, I am looking forward to new adventures to encounter and conquer.
This is also a crucial period for our country, because the National Elections that has been talk of the town for several months is finally happening. In a matter of weeks, our country will have a new set of leaders… leaders that have promised to bring about the “change” Filipinos have been yearning for.
CHANGE is such a funny thing. We want it so badly from other people but not for ourselves. We know it’s “the only constant thing in this world,” yet we resist it when it’s upon us. In a world where people got used to living out a routine, it’s quite understandable how change can be frightening and uncomfortable for most people.
Today, I’d like to challenge your perception on change. Instead of fighting change, why don’t you INITIATE change?
When I was 16 years old, I left my home in Mariveles, Bataan to study in the University of the Philippines, Diliman. It was also then when I began my voice acting career after winning a radio drama contest in DZMM. Since then, my life has taken twists and turns that I have never imagined for myself, and I mean that in a good way. Traveling the world as a youth advocate, building my own business, becoming a motivational speaker, creating the largest youth media organization in the country… none of those were part of the plan. But when life presented me with those opportunities, I knew it was my choice whether or not to take it. So I did.
My life could barely be classified as “routinary”. I could be working in my office one day, then flying to a province for a talk the next day, then do a voiceover for an event as soon as I get back… my routine is not having a routine at all! I have designed my life so that it takes me by surprise as to what will happen each day, and I love it! I wake up each day wondering, “What amazing thing will happen today?”
Like I said, it’s all about perception. We cannot control everything that happens in our life, but we can control the way we react to life.
You have 2 choices when it comes to change – you can either be a VICTIM of change, or you can be an AGENT of change. Many of us choose to be the former. We always seem to find an excuse to not MOVE. The sad thing is, most people will resist change as if it’s worse than what they’re going through right now!
Let me share with you three insights that will help you become more open to initiating change in your life:
1. Change is always an opportunity to GROW. Change always makes a person STRETCH. Changes that work in your favor will make you want to do more. Change that is unfavorable to you, on the other hand, will make you want to do better. It is through change that you are able to uncover the talents, skills, patience and resilience you wouldn’t know you have if you stay right where you are.
2. It’s your chance to be PROACTIVE with your life. Let’s be real here. The only person in charge of your life is YOU. You cannot depend on the government, your parents, your spouse, your company, your boss or anyone else to “fix” your life. Going through change is your chance to dictate what happens to your life. If you don’t, someone else will.
3. Change could be DESIRABLE. Some people allow themselves to be fed up with their own circumstance that ANY kind of change is welcome. But again, if you decide to be an agent of change, you get to decide what kind of change you want… and it could be a good one. When I established Voice of the Youth Network, I made a conscious decision to build it upon the mission of creating positive social change. That’s why our focus is on informing, inspiring, involving and empowering the youth, and we have been doing so for the past 20 years.
Our life is a book. Everyday is a blank page, every year a blank chapter. Regardless of the circumstances around us, we decide the story that will be written on the pages of our life. It all starts with your perception. Just like what I said in Pochology, “Change the way you see the world, and you see a world you want to see.”
Contributed By: Pocholo “The VoiceMaster” Gonzales
Ross is known as the Pambansang Blogger ng Pilipinas - An Information and Communication Technology (ICT) Professional by profession and a Social Media Evangelist by heart.
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