Leading Change: If you’re not leading change, what are you leading?
If you’re not leading change, what are you leading?
As we’ve worked with more and more leaders over the years, we’ve come to believe that one of the most important things we can do with our leadership role and privilege is to lead change, to determine what needs to be different and use our influence to change things, to make them better. If we’re not doing that, are we just upholding the status quo? Maintaining current state? And is that leadership?
We’re not saying we should be constantly leading change. There is a need for stability, rest and recovery, but the reality is the world around us is always changing and as leaders we need to be paying attention to that and responding. The desire to keep things the same feels safe, it’s the comfort zone. It’s known and familiar and doesn’t involve much risk, at least not in the short term. But the truth is the risk is there, but it’s longer term, and it’s harder to pinpoint to a particular leader or moment in time. The risk of not adapting to the changing world, to an already diverse workforce, to the younger generations coming up, to the changes in our social systems and new ways of thinking and understanding, is huge. It’s the risk of becoming outdated, left behind, or even irrelevant.
Initiating change feels riskier in the short term. What if you don’t get it right? What if it’s not perfect? The good news, or maybe this is the bad news, is that things aren’t perfect the way they are now either! It’s not a choice between maintaining a perfect system now or moving to a potentially imperfect one if we change. It’s shifting from an imperfect situation to an attempt at finding a better one. Anytime we chart new territory, it’s bound to be messy. But there are a few things that make the road easier to travel.
As a leader, listen to what your heart and your people are telling you should be better.
Change is hard. What makes it worth doing is the promise of getting to somewhere better, and that somewhere needs to be meaningful to you, and to those you serve as a leader. We don’t want change or disruption for its own sake. If we’re going to do the work of change, we want it to matter.
So, when you’re considering your role in leading change, look around at what you know in your heart should and could be better. Listen to your people when they talk about what they want to be better, too. Focus on the most meaningful changes, invest your energy and influence there. Yes, it will be hard work, but think about your leadership legacy. What do you want your own leadership to mean? What would you hope people would say about you as a leader and the kinds of changes you led?
Expect resistance.
Resistance is not an indicator you should stop. Resistance is a normal human reaction to change, even when it was asked for, even when it is in service of making something better. As humans, the unknown is a scary place, and change is about moving into new and unknown territory. Not our favourite, no matter how many times we hear the invitation to “innovation” or “disruption”. When we get into a place of growth and change there will be fear, and fear can show up in many ways; resistance, anger, push back, denial, blame, shutting down, grasping for certainty, etc.
When that happens, and it will, we need to listen and support, but not stop. And when that comes up inside us, same thing! Listen, be compassionate, but if you believe the change is leading somewhere better, keep going.
Communicate the why, not just the what.
In the absence of information about why things are changing, people will fill in the blanks. The problem is, most of what we make up is wrong. It’s based on our fears or our need for security or what used to work. So, we tell ourselves stories to fill in the gaps and make ourselves feel more comfortable. When you’re leading change, you really need to start with why. Why would you ask everyone to go through the upheaval of moving to something new? There must be a good reason, and one where people can see the benefits, and in particular the benefits to them personally. Then say it again. And again. It’s so easy to lose sight of why we’re changing things, especially when we get into the transition process.
Communicating the why, over, and over, is critical. But you also have to consistently communicate about the what and the how. People want to know what to do next, how to be successful, what to expect. The more you can engage with people impacted by the change and have real discussions with them about all of it, the better. This is not the time to put your head down or close your door because you’ve got so much going on. One of the challenges of leading change is that just as you are going through your own transition process, with the uncertainty and disruption to yourself, you also need to be there to guide and support your people and organization through the transition process. Not easy! Plan to be busy. The upside is, the more you invest in engaging your people in real conversations about how it’s going, the more invested they will be in supporting the change.
Be persistent.
We often think of change as an event. It’s not, it’s a process. And it’s a process where regression is possible and even predictable. Whenever we try to move something forward, there comes a time when we think we’re done. And that is not the time to relax, it’s the time to pay attention, because when we lose focus, we can lose traction on some of the progress made. Old habits die hard and can resurface just when we think the work of change and transition is done.
Become a student of change and transition.
As a change leader, it’s important to know your subject well. There are many great resources that talk about managing and leading change and how we respond to change, the best practices for leading through change, etc.
✨ Looking for inspiration and tools? Here are some recommendations:
Bridges: Transition Management Articles
HBR Article: Change Is Hard. Here’s How to Make It Less Painful.
