Why I Decided to Change
by Jonathan Jolsten

Nothing I say will make you change.

Unfortunately, I can’t download what I felt over the last 16 months to your brain so you can bypass the work.

I don’t know that I would want to, though.

I want you to feel better. No doubt. The decisions to change and the work to change are too countless and variable for your experience to be exactly like mine.

The fact remains that I made multiple reckless decisions. I became a worse version of myself. One night I heard myself and hated the sound of my voice. The anger. The emotions that are mine – but not. The people in my life deserved better.

I realized that change wouldn’t happen until I recognized that I deserved better.

Imagine each decision contributing to the momentum of a train heading to a destination. Sometimes you despise the destination but feel the momentum is too strong to stop. You start a few habits and expect this to be the train reversing direction. I found that this moment is actually the train slowing to a stop. While stopped, you continue to build the habits so the train gains speed to your desired location.

The truth is I usually stopped when the train was stopped. Now, I feel like I’m onboard a train swiftly moving to the destination I wanted for years. Why was this time different?

I realized that each reckless decision was made to change how I felt. I realized how these decisions were impacting those I love and myself. I realized the cycle of wanting change, then not prioritizing change, was contributing to negativity and pessimism.

If you turn to something that changes how you feel know that eating well, exercising, and personal development achieves the same goal. It becomes a new cycle that leads you closer to who you truly are – the destination you truly deserve.