When ASEA CEO Chuck Funke walked on stage at the 2021 North America Conference in Nashville, there was a reason he chose to have the Christopher Cross song “All Right” playing over the loudspeakers.

It’s all right, I think we’re gonna make it; I think it just might work out this time.

Chuck’s prepared remarks covered a scary topic—change—and the optimistic chorus line was his first line of defense against the fear that often attends it. In this article, we’ve pulled from his presentation to help us think about change in positive and helpful ways so that we can not only cope with it but succeed because of it.

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A simple question

Change is something we all readily identify with and recognize the need for.

Ask yourself, Is there any aspect of your life—personal, physical, professional, emotional, social, relational, or otherwise—that you would like to change?

Presumably, you can think of at least one thing. If so, the real question becomes this: If we all recognize the need for it, why do so many of us dislike change and, at times, actively campaign against it?

Your opportunity in change

Think back to the question you asked yourself. What is it you would like to change and why? How would that change benefit you? In other words, what opportunity does that change represent?

Resistance to change is a label we carelessly apply to people who seem unwilling to accept a new idea. But that’s not fair. For the most part, it isn’t the change itself that people resist. People resist external change for the same reason they embrace internal change: because they believe there is something of value to be gained or lost. It’s an issue of opportunity.

See the present situation

There’s an old saying: The situation is the boss. Right now, in business and in social life, the situation dictates that we do things differently. Change is here. (Ironically, it’s always been here, and we should take comfort in that fact.) It’s our challenge and our opportunity to understand the present change, respond to it, embrace it, and ultimately succeed because of it.

When we understand that the path forward is rarely a straight line and certain things have to change before others can, we can look squarely at our opportunities and see this change as the path to reach what we want. This can help remove the link between change and fear to restore peace, purpose, and excitement to your decisions.