Embracing Change: The Fight Between Past Self and Future Self.

It's a profound fact of life that humans are constantly evolving, morphing, and growing. Our ambitions shape us, our experiences refine us, and our goals propel us forward. Still, we often struggle when we desire to become something different or someone better. This struggle, this inherent resistance to metamorphosis, is intrinsically rooted in our attachment to who we have been, our previous versions, and our past selves. This attachment to the past often handcuffs us, hindering us from becoming who we desire to be. This essay aims to convince us to challenge this resistance and thus allow the beauty of personal evolution to come into full play.

Understanding this battle between who we are and who we want to be requires a deep dive into the territory of our psyche. Much like a tree, we have rings - layers of time and experience that build up to form the current version of ourselves. Each layer, each ring, makes us who we are. These marvelous, comforting, and sometimes inconvenient layers are our anchors to the past. They include our traditions, victories, failures, and experiences, and these anchors often prevent us from leaving our comfort zone and embracing change.

This comfort zone, a construct of our past experiences, engenders a sense of familiarity and predictability that aids our survival instincts. Thus, when we challenge the rules of this comfortable space and attempt to become a better version, in essence, a different version of ourselves, we are directly challenging our survival tactics. So, the fight begins. This resistance to change is why people don't evolve into who they want to be; they are too attached to their past selves and who they have been.

Nevertheless, we must realize that blending the boundaries between our comfort zone and the unknown, exploring who we can be rather than lingering on who we are, is the essence of human evolution. It is the kernel of self-confirming prophecy where our ability to dream and imagine better versions of ourselves allows us to become that.

While the past is familiar and comforting, the potential within us is infinitely more immense than our past. What we have been should not restrict who we can become. Our past should serve as a stepping stone for the future, not an anchor holding us to what we have already experienced. Growing and metamorphosing is not about forgetting or dismissing our past but about learning from it and leveraging those lessons to shape a better future self.

Henry Ford famously stated, "If you always do what you've always done, you'll always get what you've always got." This verse translates to if we stick to our past selves too closely, we will stay in the past or, at best, in the present. To march towards the future, to change and improve, we must incorporate adaptation, learning, and personal growth into our narrative.

Let us look at some of the world's most successful people. They didn't get there by simply accepting their past selves and remaining unchanged. They actively sought personal evolution, cultivated new skills, embraced change, and dared to shed old layers that no longer serve them. They learned to balance their respect for their past selves with their aspirations for their future selves.

In conclusion, detaching from our past selves is crucial to becoming who we truly want to be. Yes, the past is essential, for it has shaped us into who we are, but it is crucial not to let it define or restrict our growth potential. Always remember that, like a snake, shedding its old skin for a new one doesn't mean it forgets it was once covered in that old skin. It simply means it realizes the necessity for a new skin for a new day.

This article is a call to action for us to strive to appreciate who we have been but be bold enough to explore who we can become. It encourages us to find the right balance between our past and future selves in a beautiful dance of evolution and self-improvement. Remember, the battle between who we have been and who we desire to be is mutable, one that we must fight to conquer and, in doing so, enable ourselves to become the best versions of ourselves.

Make 2024 your year of change.

We are NU breed, the rumor of something good.