Are you fearful of change or do you embrace it? Change happens and we can’t do anything about that, however, we can control how we react to it. Let’s discuss why change is good.
Have you read ‘Who Moved My Cheese?’ by Dr Spencer Johnson? It’s a fantastically funny little book about four characters who navigate their way through a maze to find cheese and face change and roadblocks along the way. Cheese is the metaphor in the book that represents what we want to be happy such as a great job, relationship, good health etc and the maze represents the place where you may find them eg, the organisation you work in, your family, your community. The trouble is the cheese keeps moving and we observe our four characters reacting and being impacted in different ways to this.
It takes less than an hour to read but it is so impactful – I highly recommend it.
How do you deal with change?
Change is consistently happening all around us, some we can control and some we really can’t. The huge sea-change on our political landscape has made a lot of people – understandably – feel fearful and uncertain which in turn, leads then to stick and stay put for fear of more upheaval.
Evolution encourages change
The ever-evolving working paradigm has changed so much in the past few years thanks to increased technological developments, the rise of flexible working and the new generational impact. The traditional working ways are now seemingly viewed now as stale and old hat. And as for those that practice them, the same.
Fear of the unknown
For those that cling on to the old and are fearful of welcoming the new, times can be tough. With change comes fear – fear of the unknown and fear of exposure and uncertainty. When we know what we’re doing, when we are comfortable and settled, we feel safe and secure. But, as the saying goes, a comfort zone is a nice place to be, but nothing ever grows there.
Embracing change
For those of us who want to grow and evolve, change needs to be welcomed. I work with a number of individuals and teams on change and how to steer the ship through it. This ensures it’s a positive experience and one to be learnt and developed from.
In business, change can be feared as people worry about their job security, their position and their shifted perception by others. To have your established role threatened, for example, can lead to people retreating and being negative to change. However from my experience, the best transitions always happen when people embrace change and make the most out of it.
Trust the process – even if it’s uncomfortable
Yes, change can be frightening but it can also be exciting and empowering and bring with it opportunity that wasn’t available before. Change happens for a reason. Often, in business, change has been considered thoroughly before implementation so it’s worth remembering that and trusting it.
You can’t avoid it, so embrace it and make the most of it. And if you need a helping hand navigating through it, do get in touch.
Background
Emma Mills-Sheffield FRSA is a strategic business advisor and coach working with clients in London and Brighton. Having spent 15 years in industry she now helps businesses become more efficient and productive to get the best from their organisation. By reviewing business operations and investing in people, this encourages business growth with a more productive and happy workforce. In short, helping businesses get shi*t done.
In January 2020 she was named as one of 100 female entrepreneurs in the UK as part of the small business campaign f:Entrepreneur. The campaign including #ialso Top 100 is a collection of women who inspire their peers and communities through their businesses and wider activities.