Maya Shankar

Most of us will say, oh, no, not at all.

What you see is what you get.

This is the finished product.

So we have this false belief that the version of ourselves that we are right now in this moment is a version of us that's here to stay.

No more self-growth, right?

And so that is obviously an illusion.

We are always changing.

We are constantly a work in progress.

And the reason why this is relevant for change is that we forget that the big changes in our lives can actually accelerate these internal shifts and transformations.

What that means is at the outset of a change, if you are feeling very, very daunted and think you can't possibly tolerate what's up ahead, that you can't possibly bear it, there is reassurance in remembering that the person that you will become on the other side of change, the person who will actually have to navigate the full arc of this experience, will in fact be different from the person you are today.

That person will have new values, new perspectives, new capabilities that the present day version of you does not have.

So that's just like baseline reminder that people should have some hope.

It's a great question.

We remain highly malleable when it comes to these sorts of dimensions.

So our belief systems and our abilities, those can change profoundly over time.

Now, let's say our personality traits, those are less subject to change over time, but that's not what we need to have change necessarily anymore.

in order to endure a change better.

So let me give you one concrete example of a value or belief change that has helped me a lot when I've been navigating the changes in my life.

So long story short, I had a very formative experience with change when I was a little kid.

I was an aspiring concert violinist.