Change vs. Transformation. What’s The Difference?

Everyone thinks they want change.

Change is easy.

What people actually crave is, transformation.

And that is considerably harder.


Change–the way we’re using the term here–are the kinds of shifts that don’t require much risk, incurs minimal inconvenience + involves very little emotion.

We change our hair colour, the position of our chair, the brand of supplement we use…with little discomfort.


Unless these changes are associated in some way with our identity, our sense of safety + security.

In which case, they are no longer changes…

…they are transformations.


Transformations revolve around the concept of letting go.

It alters our position to things, the way we see ourselves + the way we interpret + engage with the world.

When we transform, we drop who we think we were + become more of who we really are.


For a phenomenon so central to the human experience, relatively little is said or understood about the process of transformation.

Our culture is not accustomed to dealing with the feelings of uncertainty that come with new things, and so a process that requires us by definition to let go of what is known to take up something new and unfamiliar can often be met with a heady cologne of apprehension, suspicion, avoidance and even, panic.

So although it is a process that is imperative to the growth + evolution of our individual and collective consciousness, it is stymied + sidelined by the ego’s delusion that safety is equivalent to keeping things the same.


My experience is that it is a natural process, and that if more people understood it better–if they had a map of sorts–they might better understand where they are, so they can recognize themselves in the process + then orient + find encouragement + strategies accordingly.

Too often, individuals get lost, discouraged…and let themselves slide back when they are at the crucial tipping point.

When they are nearly there but the final travails seem so insurmountable that they relent to the pressure rather than dig deeper + propel themselves towards the inevitability of their new standing.

Sooo…for your inspirational consideration, I give you:



[*Best I could do on short notice, but you get the idea. Mind-blowing infographic coming soon…]

The Chung Trajectory of Transformation:

1. Curiosity
It starts with wondering. What are the possibilities? What could possibly be happening? You don’t even have to do too much, you just have to poke something out, and you wonder what is going to happen? What if?

There is very little skin in the game, there is no investment yet, you just are literally + metaphorically poking your head out the window.

2. Enthusiasm
You start a new project and you say to yourself, “Yes! I’m going to take on the world!” And with your enthusiasm there is really no way but up, you are really excited about this project, and Enthusiasm provides that initial thrust upwards. And that’s great. But then more is needed.

3. Seeking
If you are growing + figuring out how to be more, you’ll need more information. And the seeking–the incessant question + answers helps you assess how to best proceed along your path.

4. Adversity
After you get a few answers and you make your way a little further, this is when adversity hits, in some way, shape or form. It could be something real, or something imagined but working through it helps us refine our values, hone our beliefs and discern our judgments.

5. New Normal

There is a possibility of a new normal. A place where the thing you’ve become is vastly different yet essentially the same as when you started.

You’ve been transformed and something that has never existed in this way before, has been created. It seems effortless, like second nature and makes you unspeakably, unreasonably happy.

So happy that after a while, you’ll have forgotten about the intensity of the birthing pains and start to feel the stirrings to start the process once again…

* * *

If you knew you were close to new Normal, would that help you continue?

Nowadays, health is largely about surface changes…

But true healing comes from a process of transformation.

It takes bravery + vision to do the latter.

But like the plant…it is the whole reason we are here.


Where are *you along this trajectory?

How do you talk yourself through times of adversity?


Post a Comment

Your email is kept private. Required fields are marked *
