Change & Transition – the event and the process.

23 Jul Change & Transition – the event and the process.

“In times of change, learners inherit the earth, while the learned find themselves beautifully equipped to deal with a world that no longer exists.” – Eric Hoffer

The transitioning of the seasons can be quite fascinating – the gentle ebb and flow of time taking up and forward, on a gentle journey of change.

As business leaders, mentors and change agents, we have found ourselves at the vortex of an unprecedented spiral at a speed never before witnessed. The generation before us had relatively fewer career-related milestones to speak of. The biggest being the day they entered the job in which they spent the most time in, the day they retired from it and the various promotions or awards that occurred in between. Words like ‘transition’ or ‘change management’ did not feature in their business lexicon.

In contrast, new jobs, cross-country moves, the dividing of families across the country or overseas are all experiences today being encountered at warp speed.

Just as one retreating season gracefully slips under that which is emerging, transition should happen gracefully; striving for personal growth and development while consciously making the choice to embrace the shifting times with joy. 

Moving from one business season to the next, cultural and process amalgamation is critical to growth, betterment and positive outcomes. The people we mentor expect us to have all the answers with a clear vision of where we are heading. It’s very likely we don’t, as most change efforts are filled with ambiguity. While it certainly isn’t easy, there are certain principles that can help graciously to accept change and transition.

1. Change can be pinned to a definite day or date but transition happens at a much slower pace. People undergo 3 main phases as they transition: Letting go of the past ways, a neutral zone where everything seems uncertain and a new beginning with new ways. 
2. People are sitting in the present, constantly evaluating it against the past. Environments, learned behaviors and familiar thought patterns are hardwired into people’s minds. One needs to adapt consciously to new ways of thinking and managing.
3. Legacy culture eats change management strategies for breakfast. You can take people out of their past into a whole new future, but you can’t take the past out of people. Give them the space and time to believe in you and buy into the vision you have enrolled them into.
4. You can change only what people know, not what they do. People are slower to change, but quicker in the evolution of their thinking. Their behavior or what they do takes time to catch up with the new thinking they have adopted.
5. Change is hard at first, messy in the middle and enriching at the end. We are all welded to our comfort zones. People will spend more time proving that doing things differently won’t work, rather than attempting to actually do things differently. But it all works out in the end. 
6. Be the change you want to see. There is nothing more powerful than leading by example.

Ralph Waldo Emerson’s beautiful perspective on change says: Not in his goals but in his transitions (that) man is great.

As you enter every new season of your life with the right strategies you can find your purpose by embracing change whole heartedly and building the future, business, or career you have always dreamed of.