The following is a summary of John Maxwell’s Developing the Leader Within You Chapter 4 called “Creating Positive Change.” Creating positive change in an organization is the true test of a leader. Anyone can get in front of a well-run organization and encourage their team to keep going. Very few leaders can make changes to an organization that’s going in the wrong direction.
Businesses need to constantly challenge old ways of doing things. Peter Drucker believes businesses need to put all processes on trial for their life every three years. Bill Gates has stated that all Microsoft products will become obsolete. The only question “is whether we will make them obsolete or someone else will.”
Managing Change is Difficult
Any person who’s led organizational change knows it can be difficult. Organizations are made up of humans, and human instinct is to avoid change. There are several reasons for this.
First, people feel awkward and self-conscious doing something new. Most people are more comfortable with old problems than new solutions. That’s because the new represents the unknown, which we naturally fear.
Next, people initially focus on what they will have to give up before focusing on what the organization will gain. They think, “How will this affect me”. Whenever we gain something, we have to give something up. Therefore, it’s unrealistic to tell people they won’t have to give anything up. As leaders, we have to help people overcome this attitude.
Also, people are afraid of being ridiculed. Whenever we try something new, we risk being mocked by others. Generally, this fear is unfounded, but it exists nonetheless. Some people are more embarrassed than others. As a leader, you must consider this fear and be aware of team members’ differing tolerance levels to ridicule.
Finally, people personalize change and may feel alone in the process. When change occurs, people aren’t alone in the process but may feel that way. Their emotions may overwhelm them, and anxiety may serve to demotivate them. View change as a process, not an event. You must continually reinforce the need to change, explaining the process and its necessity. Announcing change and moving on will only cause resistance.
We tend to overestimate the event of change and underestimate the process. You can’t expect to change something and have everyone fall in line. That’s why it’s called managing change. Use the process called PLAN AHEAD: ·
Predetermine the change that is needed. You can’t be complacent. The first step is determining what needs to be changed.·
Lay out your blueprint for change. Develop a written blueprint for change. Let people ask questions, provide input, and adjust as you go.·
Adjust your priorities. If we want to change for the better, we must be willing to change our priorities. We must take resources away from other projects, even those that are important, to focus on the change we need. Changing is not without cost.·
Notify key people. Don’t share information with everyone all at once. You don’t need to make communication fair; it must be strategic. Before you let the masses know, you need to tell your key leaders and get them on board. Keep meeting with those key leaders until you work through objections and get buy-in.·
Allow time for acceptance. Acceptance usually happens in three phases (i) it won’t work; (ii) it’ll cost too much; and (iii) I thought it was a good idea all along. You need to slow down and give people time to process. Make your communication here clear and simple. Build in time for others to process your idea.·
Head into action. Once you have the buy-in of key players, it’s time to act. That doesn’t mean everyone is on board, as 20% of people will likely be against it no matter what. You can’t wait for everyone.·
Expect problems. Motion causes friction; any time anyone initiates change, problems will arise. You need to be proactive and anticipate these problems. However, even the most proactive leader will still run into unanticipated issues.·
Always point to the successes. The three keys to inspiring change are reinforce, reinforce, and reinforce. We need to encourage people to keep doing the right things. One of the best ways we can do this is to celebrate small and large successes. This helps validate the efforts of those championing change on your behalf.·
Daily review your progress. You must constantly review the progress being made on the change. This lets you know how far you’re coming along and reminds you to reinforce the message continually. Talk about the change clearly, creatively, and continually to ensure it stays on the mind.
Ultimately, your ability to create positive change will depend on whether people buy into you as a leader. This depends on your credibility, which creates authority. People buy into the leader first and then the vision. People who buy into you will want what you want because they trust you.