Change is Good – Change is Good!
Change is Good!
Change is Good!
Change is Good!
Everybody wants it . . . . but nobody wants it.
Change is a disruptor. Change disrupts the status quo. Change can create new processes that are more efficient, serve our customers better, and ultimately make us more successful.
Change is good!
Everybody wants it . . . . but they want it for someone else.
Wait – Change is Tough!
The problem with Change is not Change. The problem with change is the process that you must go through. Matthew Perry, in his book the “Dream Manager”, postulates that everybody wants change, but nobody wants to go through the process that is required.
They want to get from Point A to Point B – they would prefer to teleport directly to Point B.
Change is about Pain. Until the pain of not changing is greater than the pain of the change most of us are unwilling to take the initiative to effect change. Put another way, the payoff to change must be greater than the payoff to stay where you are.
The culture of business is changing. Our employees are changing. Our customers are changing. To keep our companies current, relevant, productive, and profitable requires that our businesses must change.
Think about that for a minute . . . . . there are changes that you would like to see . . . . . but whether it be about the pain of change or an unclear payoff, we never seem to get started.
Change can be a very good thing!
How can you effect change with the least amount of pain and resistance? What can you do to overcome the barriers to change?
- Communicate clear expectations. Most people have a fear of the unknown. They know what to expect today. Uncertainty is uncomfortable. Even a very global thinker will settle in pretty quickly on how will this change affect me? Without clear expectations our subconscious can come up with some pretty crazy ideas (this is a positive in brainstorming and creative thinking – it can a nightmare in the context of uninformed change).
- Define Success. Like a goal, develop clear measurements for success. Be sure to post your goal and report status and progress regularly.
- Who will this impact? How will this change benefit our team? How will the change benefit our customers? How will this change impact our bottom line? What is he payoff?
- Establish a Champion – or cheerleader for the proposed change?
- Consider the ‘unexpected’ consequences of the proposed change?
- Commit Resources. Large or small, change requires time or money.
- Engage your Team. Consider what role each team member might play in implementing the desired change.
- Establish a Timeline. Does the timeline provide sufficient time to break down barriers, engage the team, and verify the preliminary results?
Consider this – You are looking across the landscape and see that the grass is greener on the other side. Maybe that greener look is more productivity, smoother operations, or more profit for your business. Unfortunately there is a barrier, a 6′ tall fence, with three strands of barbed wire across the top. Perhaps that barrier is not a fence, but rather fear, risk, reluctance, or apathy.
The motivation for change has to be great enough to make you want to climb the fence. Let’s Introduce a fierce dog barking and snipping at your heels. An investment in climbing the fence of change is starting to look pretty good.
If you are not getting the results you want, personal or business, you have to change something. If you keep doing the same thing, you will keep getting the same results.
This week – identify one item that you would like to change and take the first step.
Remember . . . . .
“By changing nothing – nothing changes.”
. . . . go have an Awesome Week!
Tom Trabue
theNextStep
photo credit – “We are Humanity FB Page”