CHANGE: What works and doesn’t work today?
I saw a sign that read:
“Complaining that everything is changing too rapidly is like complaining that rocks are hard. It’s true but useless.”
So true!
Almost no one likes change, except perhaps the baby with a dirty diaper. Change is always stressful and challenging. Even good change can be difficult.
So it’s no wonder that the two most common responses to change are denial and resistance.
The denial folks just pretend it doesn’t exist. Lots of people before and after our most recent elections cut off every source of news that might bring them some information. They’ve cut off TV and cable news, stopped their use of social media, and stopped tuning into podcasts and everything else. When I chat with these people, I’m amazed as to how clueless they are about what is happening in our country and around the world. I try to remind them that ignorance is not bliss; ignorance is dangerous.
The resistance folks just lash out. They automatically oppose any idea that comes from the “other side,” simply because they don’t like or trust the source of that idea. They forget that, historically speaking, the best ideas have always come from debating various points of view, not from instantly dismissing the “other side’s” ideas.
The truth is, both responses to change … denial and resistance … are fairly useless responses.
► 1. The denial of change is useless because it shields you from the truth.
After all, the truth almost always comes out — sometime, somewhere, anyway. As an example, people believed for hundreds of years that Aristotle was right when he said that the heavier an object happened to be, the faster it would fall to the earth.
People believed Aristotle was one of the greatest thinkers of all time, so no one ever thought any differently. He couldn’t be wrong.
All it would have taken was for one brave individual to take two objects, one heavy and one light, and drop them from a great height to see whether or not the heavier object landed first. But no one challenged Aristotle for 2000 years.
It wasn’t until 1589 that Galileo brought some professors with him to the Tower of Pisa. They went to the top and pushed off a ten-pound weight and one-pound weight. They both hit the ground at the same time. But the power of denial was so strong that the professors denied what they saw and continued to teach that Aristotle was right.
In a similar manner, I suspect you probably hold some beliefs that are just plain wrong and possibly dangerous. For example, the alcoholic says, “I can handle my liquor.” The hurting person, “I don’t believe in asking for help or seeing a counselor.” The naïve person says, “I don’t vote because it doesn’t make any difference who gets elected.”
Take a moment to inventory the false beliefs you’re hanging onto. And become aware of how those beliefs are hurting you.
By contrast, to get more of those beliefs in your head that will help you instead of hurt you, to be better equipped for success in a changing world.
► 2. Resistance to change is useless because it slows you down.
Resistance prevents you from getting in when the getting is good. It’s a mistake that resistors often make but successful entrepreneurs seldom do.
For example, in 1829, Martin Van Buren, the governor of New York wrote to the President. He wrote, “The canal system of this country is being threatened by the spread of a new form of transportation known as railroads. As you may well know, railroad carriages are pulled at the enormous speed of 15 miles per hour by engines, which, in addition to endangering life and limb of passengers, roar and snort their way through the countryside. The Almighty certainly never intended that people should travel at such breakneck speeds.”
Sometime later Van Buren was elected to the Presidency. But his resistance to change made him a poor President. He would have been a much more effective leader if he looked into the possibilities of good that might come from some new ideas and innovations.
As a leadership and management consultant, coach, and speaker, I’ve spent my life teaching people how to embrace change, sorting out the good from the bad, and then showing them how to lead themselves and others through the change.
But do you know that the first management conference ever held was in 1882, sponsored by the German Post Office? Only CEO’s were invited, and the topic was “How Not to Be Afraid of The Telephone.” Nobody showed up. The invitees were insulted. The idea that they should use a telephone was unthinkable. It was only for underlings.
Again I wonder how many opportunities passed by those CEO’s because they resisted the change and got on board later instead of sooner.
What changes are you resisting? What are you losing by not embracing some of those changes? It’s time to be aware of those things instead of continuing to hurt yourself.
If you’re going to be a master of change, if you’re going to profit from change, I suggest you let go of denial and get past resistance as fast as possible.
► 3. Accept the fact that change won’t go away.
Life is not a movie with a neat ending, Today, change is more like a serial. It’s never over. And you’ve got to be ready to take on the change, every day, forever, without a break.
And how do you know if you’ve accepted that truth? Ask yourself one question. Have you ever thought, “If I can just hang on a few more weeks and get through this change, I can get back to normal?” If so, you’re in trouble. You’ve got to accept reality — that change won’t go away. The change will never be over.
That being the case, that change will always be a part of our lives, jobs, and relationships, you need to be asking yourself new questions. Ask yourself, “How can I shape that change for the better? What good can I squeeze out of that change? How can I respond to changes I like without gloating? And how can I respond to changes I don’t like without losing my cool?”
Finally
► 4. Remind yourself that the old systems won’t protect you from the new changes.
In other words, you can no longer rely on your old protections while the whole world is changing. In the midst of change, even the rules change. What saved you in the past will not save you in the future.
In the past, your good performance may have guaranteed a job, and that worked as long as the world stayed pretty much the same. These days, your knowledge and skills can become outdated so rapidly that your good performance may soon become irrelevant — if you’re not in a mode of continuing education.
Likewise, don’t expect your longevity to save you from the demands of change. Some people think, “I’ve worked for this company for 26 years and they owe me.” No they don’t. When you got your last paycheck, the company was all caught up. They don’t owe you anymore. Traditional definitions of longevity and loyalty just don’t apply anymore.
Don’t waste any more time denying or resisting change. Instead, spend your energy focusing on how to be successful in the midst of change.
Dr. Zimmerman’s Tuesday Tip, Issue 1272- CHANGE: What works and doesn’t work today?
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