The Importance of Embracing Change in Times of Crises
Take a minute and think about what brands and companies were industry leaders 20 years ago: Sears, Blockbuster, Motorola, and Napster—just to name a few. All of these, and more, provide examples of organizations that no longer exist or only maintain minuscule remnants of their former greatness.
We often talk about these organizations as if they are living organisms that caused their own demise. But, in fact, they merely fell victim to leaders who were not able to anticipate and adopt the changes necessary to meet the challenges imposed on them by outside forces.
Given the current global health crisis that is disrupting virtually every industry around the world, now is the time to improve our agility. We’re seeing firsthand just how quickly the world can change, and businesses will need to adapt rapidly to remain competitive.
Our challenge as change leaders is to take the right actions today to ensure we come out stronger on the other side of this. Whether thinking about COVID-19, or any type of future upset to the global marketplace, we can’t expect that everyone who needs to embrace change will be ready, willing, and able to do so. As change leaders, a major objective is to guide a change journey that will help people transform faster and more efficiently. During times of confusion and uncertainty, people look to leaders for hope, inspiration, clarity, and a way forward.
In my recently released book, Changeocity: Change With Velocity - A Leader's Guide to Getting THERE Faster, With Less Disruption, and Fewer Casualties, I provide tips and techniques to help leaders and businesses thrive in challenging times of change.
To get you started on your Changeocity journey, here are 4 considerations you should keep in mind as you work to balance velocity with effective change leadership:
1. As individuals, we are more open to change when we want to change rather than feeling like someone else is making us change. Therefore, how we as Change Leaders introduce, position, and lead change makes all the difference.
2. There is only so much intellectual and emotional capacity humans have to adopt change. Our job is to help people navigate change, balancing speed with empathy towards the individuals involved.
3. People will have different motivations for embracing change. It is our job to connect with, inspire, and align people behind a common sense of purpose and direction.
4. We must have a compelling reason for going through the change journey. Identify this reason, and clearly articulate it to all involved.
With COVID-19 changing the way people do business all over the world, we have no choice but to embrace change. If you’re a change leader looking to remain ahead of the curve and adapt your responses to change, I urge you to embrace Changeocity and go on this journey with me.
Download a free chapter of Changeocity: Change With Velocity - A Leader's Guide to Getting THERE Faster, With Less Disruption, and Fewer Casualties, or get the book on Amazon. I am dedicated to providing you the techniques you need to move the needle, and in the coming months, I will be posting more tips and techniques to successfully lead change. If you have questions about your industry, company, or role, please don’t hesitate to send me a message! We’re all in this together.