Some General Thoughts on Change Management
In this pandemic/post-pandemic reality, we are all change managers. Whether in our organizations, departments, homes, and places where we volunteer, here are some general thoughts that might be useful as we navigate and manage the change in our lives.
What is generally true is not always individually true.
This matters because as we seek to lead organizations through change, while best practices may be best practices generally, they don’t always fit an individual organization’s situation. This is where nuance, context, and wisdom come in. We need to know the best practices out there and then when and how to apply them to a specific context. This maxim applies to many areas of life, not just change! (And keep that in mind as you read the rest of the thoughts.)
Stop looking for the right decision and focus on the best decision.
There are very few decisions that have one right answer. Typically, multiple options exist for our problem, each of which has its unique set of pros and cons. Good decision-making isn’t about always being right! Instead, making the best decision holds our values, our mission, and the information we have at hand in tension so we can make the best decision we can in light of these things. Don’t ask, “Is this decision right or wrong?” Instead, consider: Which cons are we willing to accept with the “pros” of that decision? Which option is best aligned with our values and our mission? This leads to the next thought…
Mistakes and failure are not the enemy – not learning and growing from them is.
As we make decisions (big and small), while we want to make good decisions, we will make mistakes and failures. The key is to learn from them. The greatest mistake we could make is to fail to learn from mistakes and keep repeating them! Failures and mistakes strengthen our future decision-making. Pro-Gamer Move: learn from OTHER PEOPLE’S failures and mistakes to improve decision-making.
Honesty and transparency are still the best policy.
As we move through change projects, honest and candid information and communication do more to build trust than keeping information close to the vest. In the absence of information, the human mind fills the gaps, and not always with accurate information. It's better to communicate candidly, early, and often – this can save a lot of pain and mistrust down the road. The decision not to communicate is often rooted in fear. When we are deciding whether to communicate or not, what are we afraid of if we were to communicate? Is it a realistic fear? Is that fear rooted in our values or our fear of failure?
The goal of the “game” is not to win, but to be able to keep playing the game.
Too often, we treat challenges or even life as a zero-sum, finite game: there is a definite winner and a definite loser. However, there is no one winner of life. (“Yay, you won life, everyone else gets a participation trophy” doesn’t exist.) Rather, life is an infinite game for everyone - the goal is to be able to keep playing. So, especially for mission-driven organizations – chances are you aren’t going to win your mission; however, you can keep delivering on your mission because it is THAT important, and it often involves creating just space for everyone to be able to keep playing the game of life.