Change is hard.

As I've gained some years of experience I have come to recognize that people come and go out of our daily lives but still we stay connected. LinkedIn is a great way to keep those connections and for that I'm grateful.

It is hard to leave jobs, committees, churches, social clubs, or boards and move on to your next. Equal to the excitement of the 'new' can be a sense of loss and sadness. It's difficult at times to move from having people in our day-to-day life to transitioning them to someone that I used to know.

Change is hard and often times necessary but think about this:

(1) Line up the why's. Make a list of every reason why you are making the change. Be thorough. Keep this reminder list in front of you for those times where you want to retreat and return to the old, comfortable, known of before.

(2) Envision your future from your current path. Write down what you imagine to be up ahead. Write down where you are going and how this new role, decision, or opportunity helps you get there.

(3) Keep some of the old. New adventures don't necessarily mean you have to discard your former relationships. Consider who are the people worth hanging on to and make plans for transitioning those everyday relationships to intentional friendships.

(4) Allow yourself to mourn. It's okay to miss a former season. Give yourself time to grieve just don't stay stuck there.

-Mindy Muller, CFRE, President/CEO of CDP