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Three Ways Of Dealing With Change

Dealing with change will differ from one individual to another. The same goes for organizations.

All these different ways of dealing with change can be categorizes into three:

Crisis (Shock)

Adaptation (Evolution)

Anticipation (Strategic Process)

Lets have a look the three ways.

1. Crisis or Shock

The first way is crisis or shock. You hit the wall hard, and it is truly a wake up call. Let’s look at examples:

You wake up at 4am in an unknown alley, throwing up all over yourself and the police are wheeling you away. All of a sudden it comes to you, “Maybe I should take another look at myself.”

Or you lose your job…

Or you receive a letter for a divorce from your spouse’s attorney…

Or you have a heart attack…

Or your plant shuts down and lays of 4000 people in one swoop.

How do we usually deal with a crisis? Yes, usually we cope. We use whatever energy we have to keep ourselves from dealing with whatever we fear.

A real problem for business is that we often change the way things look. But in fact, nothing really changes. We change the structure of the organization. Or we change the reporting lines.

It’s like moving the chairs on the titanic.

Kotter’s first step in dealing with change effectively is to create a sense of urgency. A crisis or a shock is sometimes the only way to wake some people up. They need it to smell the roses.

Sometimes you need to create that shock to make people urgent to change.

2. Adaptation

Another way of dealing with change is by adapting. We say, ‘Well everyone is doing it, so I guess it’s okay for me to do it,” and then we get in line with the others.

This is evolution or adaptation.

What is the cost of getting in at the end of the line? Missed opportunities. “Why didn’t I think of that?”

Let’s look at an analogy. What would happen if you put a frog into a pan of boiling water? You probably know the answer…it would jump out.

Now, what would happen if you put a frog into a pan of cold water and then slowly turned up the heat? The frog would adapt…right into frog legs!

You can adapt right into extinction.

This is why it is so important to let some employees sees the benefits of change. The sooner they see and experience it, the sooner they will follow.

3. Anticipation

The last way is anticipation (strategic process). As Peter Drucker says, “The best way to predict the future is to create it”

How far do you as an organization vision into the future?

Anticipation is moving from a lifetime of knowing into a lifetime of learning. When you are asleep and running on automatic, you do not anticipate.

Back in the 1960’s, when space travel just began, NASA chose their astronauts on the following criteria:

Being a fighter pilot.

Have an engineering degree.

Were straight A students.

Today, above all of the credentials, the determining quality is the ability to operate in AMBIGUITY.

This is the difference between operating from a place of knowing, to a position of learning. It is a good space to be in when you are dealing wit change.

So what does it all mean? When you are going through a change process, it is important to recognize how each individual react when dealing with change. This will make it easier for you to deal with the human element.

Some might embrace it, others might need a shock, and others will even anticipate it.

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Return from Dealing With Change to Managing Change

Return from Dealing With Change to Sustainable Employee Motivation

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Hi, my name is Derik Mocke, The Energizer.
I like to describe myself as an energetic, purpose driven, educated, present moment, emotionally aware, fun loving professional life coach, group coach, motivator, father and marathon runner.
My life purpose is to help people, groups and companies to find their energy and zest for life.
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