Expect turbulence after big leaps because systems fight to stay the same

Biology, families, teams, even your calendar behave like systems. Systems like equilibrium. When one part changes, the rest try to pull it back. This isn’t personal, it’s math. Start a new habit, and your environment throws friction—software crashes, your cousin questions your choices, the dog gets sick. People call this bad luck. It’s more like homeostasis doing its job.

That’s why planning for turbulence is smart, not cynical. When you predict three likely disruptions, you can build safety nets before you need them. A backup laptop arrangement with a friend, two people you can text when you want to quit, and a small emergency fund turn a derailing week into an annoying one. You keep moving because the pothole was on your map.

Micro-anecdote: After raising her photography rates, Andrea hit a quiet three weeks and almost caved. She’d already written a “no retreat” note and taped it to her monitor: “I don’t discount in panic.” She used her buffer time to improve her portfolio and followed her plan for outreach. Week four, she booked two full-rate projects.

Change management research and family systems theory both warn of “change-back attacks.” When you alter a pattern, other parts of the system react to restore the old pattern. Measuring progress by process inputs shields motivation by keeping your focus on controllable actions during noisy periods. And pre-commitment rules limit in-the-moment bargaining when stress is high. Expect the wobble. Build for it. Keep going.

Before you make your next big move, write down three specific disruptions you’d expect if the system fought back. Put two safety nets in place—a small cash buffer, a backup device plan, or two friends you can text at any hour—and draft a one-sentence rule that you’ll follow when things get loud. Then, for the next month, track what you can control like outreach or practice hours, not just results. When turbulence hits, read your rule out loud and execute today’s inputs. Prep your safety nets this weekend.