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Important Changes Can’t Be Undone.

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Undo KeyI admit it…I am not sure who some of my Facebook friends are, or where they came from. There must be some connection, some reason I either offered them a friend request, or accepted one that was sent my way. It’s easy enough to unfriend them; but then again, why bother? Our relationship isn’t that important to either of us.

Just like unknown “friends” on Facebook, little changes can be easily undone. If you fell in love with the paint chip in the store but hate the way the living room looks now that you have painted it, you can redo it. If you felt good about the way the new suit looked on you in the dressing room but saw it differently once you got home, you can return it. Some car dealerships are now offering exchange and/or return options for new car purchases.

But, important changes can’t be undone. [Read more…]

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Character and Presence: Guest Post by Daryl Conner

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daryl-conner-high-resIt is an honor to publish this guest post by Daryl Conner. For more than four decades Daryl has been a thought leader in the field of change management. I have had the good fortune to study and work with Daryl for much of the past 28 years. Over the last five years, he has increasingly turned his attention to the role that character and presence play in the effectiveness of change practitioners and organizational leaders; Conner Academy serves leaders and practitioners seeking to “raise their game” through a focus on character and presence. In this post Daryl discusses character and presence more generally, encouraging us to consider the role our own character and presence plays whether we are leading, facilitating, or otherwise undergoing change.

There is a quote that “eighty percent of life is showing up.” While showing up is certainly important, it has become clear to me through my years of work in the field of change management that how we show up also plays a critical role both in our ability to influence and to lead others, and in how we experience change ourselves. At the root of how each of us shows up are our character and our presence. [Read more…]

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Commitment is Easy…

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iStock_000014440792SmallOr is it?

How long have you been thinking about this change? Analyzing it? Considering the pros and cons? Shaping it in your mind? Assessing what it will take, and how likely that it will work? Maybe you’ve talked it over with a few people, a spouse or best friend, or (if it is a business change), key colleagues and those who report directly to you.  You’ve decided to move forward. You’re committed!

Or are you?

And what about the people who have to make this journey with you?

Let’s take a look at a few key things about commitment. [Read more…]

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All Change is Political

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iStock_000004893516Small

It is a rarely spoken truth. All change is political. Power shifts are an inherent part of every change. As I will discuss below, this is as true at the personal level as it is at the organizational and the social levels.

We know this when we think in terms of national change. Certainly it’s true of political races, whether local, statewide, or national. There is not a broad social movement that doesn’t quickly engage—or scare off—politicians. Politics come into play in school board races, in social club elections, and in community-based organizations. They show up in our religious institutions. Parents attempt to coach their children’s athletic teams, or lead their youth groups, in order to have some control over their children’s experience. Those in power run for re-election to retain power. Those out of power run for election to continue the path of a retiring incumbent, to build on but shift the path, or to put things on a completely different path forward.

In our organizations, we have all heard of “office politics.” Every big change messes with them. While it is rarely, if ever, part of the official planning process, these changes result in power shifts which can be of significant magnitude. One place we often do see acknowledgement of the power dynamics of a change is in the leadership of acquired organizations. While it is not unusual for their contributions to be acknowledged, for a significant payment to be made, and for a place to be found in the new organization, it is unusual for them to remain in that new place any longer than necessary to receive the maximum personal benefit; they no longer have the power—the political influence—they had before the acquisition.

But underneath the surface, politics is hard at work during major organizational change. This often starts in the C-suite, where colleagues are vying for power, often at the expense of the change, and even of the organization they are purporting to serve. Following their leaders’ examples, the politics cascades through the organization as rapidly as (or more rapidly than) the change itself.

But how is personal change political? [Read more…]

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Are They Really Helping You?

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iStock_000007716967SmallIt feels good when people agree with you. If feels even better when they say supportive things and offer their encouragement. But when it comes time to carry out a really tough change, are they actually helping?

The answer is, it depends…It depends on whether they are saying what they think you want to hear, or telling you what you need to hear in order to be successful.

Some people set themselves up for failure, surrounding themselves with head-shakers, yes-sayers, make-you-feel-gooders. Those who dare to speak up and say “The emperor has no clothes” are quickly silenced. We see it with business leaders, with politicians, and even with our family and friends. Inevitably their trains go off the tracks; unfortunately, they are not the only ones who suffer in the process.

Most of us are more open to the truth, even when it contains bad news. After all, you don’t want a doctor giving you a clean bill of health because he doesn’t want you to be upset about the illness he has diagnosed.

Unfortunately, all too often friends, family, change practitioners, and peers are less candid. Perhaps they don’t want to upset you, to hurt your feelings, to dim your enthusiasm. But, in their absence of candor they are not helping. In fact, they are putting the change you are working on at risk. [Read more…]

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What Questions Are You Asking Yourself?

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Question markQuestions are at the heart of change.

For the individual change practitioner (the coach, the mentor, the therapist), questions are a critical–even the primary–tool.

Organizational change practitioners rely on them as well, though generally not as often.

But what about you if you are the one taking the change journey? What questions are you asking yourself?

I’m not referring to questions like Why is this happening to me? Why is this happening now?  and  so forth.  I am referring to those self-exploration questions that help move you forward on the path.

What are some of those questions? [Read more…]

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