What is relevant is that mental health is also not merely the absence of dis-ease, or stress. Good mental health is the presence of emotional and psychological capabilities in our lives that allow us to deal with stress or the effects of dis-ease.
Mental health and emotional well-being is essential for change.
If we are stressed or dis-eased, dealing with change becomes difficult, or even impossible. In fact, the prospect of change can often be very revealing about a person's mental health. It's understandable that people facing change cycle through normal coping or defense mechanisms regarding the change. However, coping with change is very difficult for someone who has not built good mental health.
To ensure that you are well equipped to deal with change it is essential to continue to build good mental health. It's not something you do once and forget about. Good mental health is a life journey that we practice every day.
The emotional and psychological capabilities we need to manage change include:
- Resilience: the ability to positively adjust to, or 'bounce back' from, the effects of adversity, change, stress or trauma.
- Balance in life: this usually requires a focus on SELF, FAMILY, WORK, and SOCIETY or COMMUNITY. Here are some great ideas to help you manage your work life balance.
- Flexibility: as a surfer we need to exercise our emotional 'muscles' so that we are ready for change and willing to move and be flexible in order to remain standing. I've put some more thoughts about this here. "The bend in the road is not the end of the road unless you refuse to take the turn" - Anon.
Mark Connelly - Change Management Coach, Business & Life Coach, Psychologist - Cape Town
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