I’ve been thinking a lot about the change process lately, with many great (and challenging) things happening in my work and personal life. In all of those cases, change that was ultimately successful was because of the relationships that have been built. In my experience, change simply doesn’t happen unless relationships are strong.
So, how do we ensure that our change efforts focus on the people in our lives? Here are three tips I practice when facing any change initiative.
Choose transparency over sureness
One of the biggest challenges to working through any change process is giving those involved enough definition so that they can determine how the change will impact their lives and work/grow to address it. After all, if we can’t place ourselves in a change process, how can we hope to shift ourselves to meet whatever requirements are necessary for the change? The leadership challenge here is that we know that we run a risk by sharing information that is not yet known, and very few things can scare a leader, like being unable to assure people. During change, people are often happier knowing what could happen than not knowing the details. Most people don’t want to be protected from erroneous information. Instead, our humanity requires us to think, process, and consider options to deal with whatever the result is. For example, during a recent hiring event, questions were raised about how a current position would change at the end of this process. There were many potential options, and I shared what I thought would make the most sense. It wasn’t definitive, nor was it guaranteed. What it was, however, was full transparency. And, at the end of the process, though some did not agree with the decision, all could say they were informed. And that information made a significant difference for me in helping guide our team towards moving forward.
Let problems have a voice (as long as solutions accompany them)
During the change process, we can sometimes become hyper-focused on the current pathway and ignore the ideas shared on pathways by others. Often, our colleagues see the problems with the processes we have built sooner than we can, simply because we are closest to those ideas. We need to allow them the opportunity to voice the challenges they see and speak to what they believe is important and would make sense. This doesn’t necessarily take away from a current path being explored. It can add value to our current pathways simply because it shows we are comfortable exploring potential obstacles. That doesn’t mean, however, that we accept problems without solutions. An important norm is that we offer everyone the opportunity to share concerns, and we also require those concerns to be accompanied by ways we might move forward. For example, during recent budget work, a question arose as to the levels of cost that should be attached to a given program. Members of the team identified a number of potential problems with our current pathway and supplied some solutions we might explore. Ultimately, we continued on the original path but with a selection of changes to address the obstacles raised. In this way, the entire team felt validated, and we weren’t just highlighting problems but also incorporating solutions.
Recognize that change is never fully complete
One of the elements of change that took me a very long time to learn was that change is never really over. We can celebrate the completion of a portion of change, and when we meet a goal, it opens new paths to other change initiatives. This is scary to think about because it represents that even during times of slow change, there is never a status quo. At the same time, this is validating because it recognizes that since change is always taking place, our emphasis on supporting our people is well-placed. To address this, we must build a culture that accepts and values change and speak to it (being repetitive as necessary) at all times. We recently completed a redesign for one of our programs. The biggest part, once complete, deserved to be highlighted and applauded. And, as we all knew it would happen, the work hasn’t stopped there. We identified new areas to be modified and new challenges and have been working to address them. We are more comfortable living with change if we all recognize that change doesn’t stop.
These three tips sound obvious. That said, it is rare that we comfortably use these guidelines throughout our change work. My goal is always to ensure that as I experience change with others, I recognize that change is rarely a solo experience. And because others are involved in the process, I need to be cognizant of their wants, needs, challenges, and worries. Only through a relational focus can we embrace change for what it is, which is a necessary part of life.
Opinions expressed by SmartBrief contributors are their own.
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