Tick Tock Goes the Internal Clock

When you hear ‘internal clock’ do you think of your biological clock?  Or do you think about the circadian rhythms and whether you’re a night owl or an early bird?  Regardless of which type of fowl you liken yourself, all humans have numerous internal clocks on many different things such as relationships, home, vehicle, and career.  Lets first look at the four different clocks for some basic understanding and then discuss how to identify and manage these clocks.

The Internal Time Clock

I believe we are all beings who at our core are seeking growth and evolution in our life path.  When there is too much mundaneness it creates a feeling of stagnation which is incoherent with the growth and evolution our souls seek.  My belief is we have innate internal clocks which prompt us to seek change to avoid falling into a rut of stagnation.  Have you ever recognized your ruts appearing in consistent time intervals?  According to Shelle Rose Charvet in “Words That Change Minds” four different clock lengths have been identified and incorporated into Neuro Linguistic Programming.

1. Sameness.  People who want the element to stay the same do not like change and may refuse to adapt.  Those with sameness clocks may accept a major change every ten years, but they will not initiate change until 15-25 years after the last change.
2. Sameness with Exception.  These individuals like the element to stay mostly the same but can accept minor changes once a year.  They need major change once every five to seven years but typically prefer the change to be gradual.
3. Difference with Exception.  This group likes both revolutionary shifts and evolutionary shifts.  They need major change on average every three years.
4. Difference.  Individuals who thrive on major, constant change fall into this category.  They need drastic change approximately every year, and if they do not get it they may leave.

Identifying the Clock

If we’re not able to recognize the clocks in play in our lives then there isn’t much we can do for applying this knowledge.  Identifying someone’s clock can easily be done in conversation.  Did you notice each clock has an interesting title?  This is because it is the very criteria used for identifying them.  If you’re wanting to know what your or someone else’s clock length is regarding a topic compare two things in relation to the specific clock you’re identifying.  For example, if you are an employer who runs operations from a sameness clock it would be valuable to know how often your employees would need change since they would likely need change before you.  You would be able to identify their ‘job’ clock by asking them to compare their last two jobs.  If they answer by telling you x, y, and z were the same with both jobs except the most recent job wasn’t as flexible, then you could conclude this person would desire major change every five to seven years (sameness with exception).  If they answer by telling you everything was different except their supervisors were great at both jobs than you could identify this person as wanting change approximately every three years (difference with exception).

This information is also very useful in relationships.  Since we all have clocks on various things other than the relationship itself, things which can heavily impact a relationship (home, vehicles, vacations, jobs, etc), it can be very useful to understand your and your partner’s clock lengths so they can be managed accordingly.

Managing Your Clock

Once you identify the clock through responses to your questions, or see it show up in patterned behavior–do you buy a new car every year?– you are then able to manage the clock as needed to keep everyone in a state of harmony.  Clocks are able to be reset without always having to have a new job, new house, or new spouse.  Making a change in the respective area of life without completely overhauling it can reset the internal clock.  Keep in mind, you will want to make changes drastically or insignificantly to align with the respective clock they will be resetting.

For those who like constant change in their career, they could seek a lateral transfer, collateral duty, or perhaps even a volunteer gig.  One of these things may give them the sense of purpose they are looking for while creating enough change in their routine to restart their clock.  Someone with a difference clock for their home may want to regularly move the furniture around, complete a home improvement project, change the color of paint, or buy new decor to create the sense of newness without breaking the bank by always moving.  Someone with a difference with exception clock on a relationship may want children every three years, a new pet, or a special vacation with just their significant other to reset their clock.

COVID has thrown a new routine into a lot of people’s lives causing clocks to be reset whether people wanted them to be or not.  I hope this information will help cultivate compassion with both yourself and those in your life regarding how you and they are adapting to change.  In contrast if you’re desperate for change even after taking extreme measures to reset your clock, you may have a block preventing your internal clock to be reset.  If you find yourself in a very constant state of discontent deeply yearning for something different, I encourage you to reach out so you can discover what’s preventing your internal clock from ticking along in harmony.

Thanks for stopping by and stay well!

Peace & Love,

Janessa