New beginnings…starting over…fresh starts are things that seem so simple and easily attainable, yet they are so difficult to achieve.

Many of us, at some point or another, seek a new beginning, a clean slate, something different in our lives.  We usually seek new beginnings when we are unhappy with our existing routine, job, relationship, self-image or other parts of our lives and ourselves.  Yet many women will not make the move towards change.  Fear, self-doubt, low self-esteem and the unknown are factors that collapse the idea of change and new beginnings.  We tend to stay in a familiar situation, or an already defined role, not because it makes us happy but because it’s safe.  It is seldom that we ask ourselves the question of “why are we doing what we are familiar with, when it no longer makes us happy?”  I believe change is connected to finding one’s true identity, or the “self”, and believing in that self so that we may “dare to dream”.

Traditionally, as women, we have been conditioned and expected to be the balance within a given situation. To endure a bad relationship because we fear being alone, to stay in a dissatisfying job situation because we may be unemployed, to self-sacrifice for our children’s and family’s needs because that is what a “good mother” is expected to do.  Where do we see a balance for ourselves within these expectations?

For women, reflecting into our selves is a difficult task.  Our perception of self worth and putting ourselves in the scheme of “balance of life” is one of the things that hold us back from exploring the concept of change in a positive light.  We frequently see change as a “necessity” rather than “a choice”.  This concept lends itself to negativity regarding change.  If we see change as negative we then feel less guilt about the process, even if it may result in a positive outcome.  Thus, change or a new beginning becomes an unsolicited consequence to a need rather than a goal or a dream.

What would happen if we were to choose one thing that we currently do not like in our lives and made an outlined plan of how we can change it, and why?  Then set reasonable goals to facilitate this change.  Do we dare to call it a dream? a wish? a plan towards something positive?  We need to start believing and seeing our goal, as not only attainable, but that we actually “deserve” to have it!  We deserve personal happiness, content within, and self-growth.  These things should be part of the balance we try to maintain in our lives and not a luxury.

So women of today….let’s dare to ask ourselves, what are we not happy with in our lives!  Let’s explore and embrace “change” as a part of our journey to a new beginning.  Please share your thoughts with us….and dare to dream!