Change is hard

Even when we want to change, it’s hard. When we don’t want to change, it can be infuriating. And trying to change other people can seem futile.

It’s hard for people to quit smoking, or build six-pack abs

It’s hard for an organization to obtain better performance from many different people, with different capabilities, in different roles, with different agendas:

There are many moving parts to be coordinated
Visions of the future may fade under the glare of resistance
The status quo may seem like the safest path
A history of unsuccessful change efforts may undermine people’s willingness to try again

It’s not just about knowing the right answer and mapping the destination. Transformational change requires a willing, discretionary effort from your team to take every step on the journey.

In many organizations, Change is not a core competency

Improvement initiatives often make extravagant claims, with disappointing results:

Creating extra work, and taking people away from what matters
Laborious new tools that don’t solve any problems
Confusing techniques in a foreign language
Inflexible methodologies that ignore the unique features of your business
Practitioners who don’t listen
Priorities that change before results are achieved
Limited improvements that quickly backslide

People may have good reasons to be skeptical, or even to resist change. But that does not mean that we afford to stay the same.

Photo by Victor Freitas: https://www.pexels.com/photo/man-in-black-crew-neck-shirt-doing-pull-ups-791764/
“The Conjuror” by Hieronymus Bosch: https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Hieronymus_Bosch_051.jpg