The HEART of Change: Perspectives from a Transition Expert
You say don’t like change. It makes you crazy. You’ve barely got this month’s schedule down, and they’re completely re-doing the organizational chart.
You say you do like change, but you realize that the only changes you like are changes from down to up; for example, knowing your favorite team is starting to win again, or arranging new furniture.
Most people really don’t like major changes in their lives because it upsets the status quo. It takes away the structure, the very foundation upon which they live. As a change management speaker, I’ve learned a lot—from my clients, as well as from my own exciting challenges with transitions.
Three quick questions:
- Do you drive the same way home every day?
- Do you usually order either the same thing or same type of item off the menu at a restaurant?
- When was the last time you changed jobs because you wanted to?
This assessment will let you know if you really do like change in your daily routine.
To get to the HEART of Change, it’s important to have some fluidity to your foundation. “Go with the flow” sounds good in theory, but it’s not quite that simple. What is needed is a balance between controlling what you can control (which is often very little) and being flexible enough to accept new ideas (even if they’re not your own).
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Begin with this exercise:
Imagine a new change that you want to occur in your life. This could be a new job, moving to a new city, getting a divorce, getting a promotion, anything that you’ve chosen to do.
What thoughts and feelings do you have regarding this transition?
Are you excited and anticipating the enjoyment you’ll have with this change?
Or are you frozen in fear at the prospect of making this move?
Do you fluctuate between the two?
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Now alter the exercise to being a change that was put upon you. You didn’t choose it. Go through the same thought process. Imagine this transition unfolding in a way that you need to follow and yet, it wasn’t what you had planned.
What are your thoughts and feelings about this?
Where was your focus?
Negative or positive?
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Look back on your life and write down all the major changes that have occurred.
What kinds of thoughts were you focused on during those transitions?
Have you fully accepted all the transitions that have occurred in your life?
These types of questions will allow you to get to the HEART of Change within your organization.
Are you ready, able, and willing to change your environment to bring successful change into your workplace?
It’s up to you. Change will happen whether or not you’re a willing participant. You can decide what you want to do with it.
