How to live with change
As a manager, you can influence others. Take change, for example. The way you personally relate to change and cope with it will have a lasting effect on your employees. But before you can help others, you must be able to help yourself. When they see how effectively you cope with change, your staff, too, will see change for what it really is - an opportunity to lead a much fuller and productive life. Here’s what you must do to survive and thrive in an age of ongoing change...
1. Look to the future.
It’s futile trying to cling to the past - or the present, for that matter. The passage of time is inevitable. By trying to hold on to the past, you impair your ability to relate effectively to what is new and coming. And so you begin to feel anxious, fear the unknown, display ignorance, or desperately seek attachments. Moving forward is not a matter of giving up what you have, it’s a matter of being free from any constraints in what you have. As the saying goes, ‘all you’ll get from looking back is a twisted neck’.
2. See change as opportunity.
All changes, even those you’d rather not have, contain the seeds of opportunity. Those opportunities can be ideas, relationships, points of view and new career directions. You'll see difficulties and obstacles until you absorb their wisdom and gather from them the essentials for further growth. Change is the price we must pay for growth, improvement, achievement and, finally, satisfaction and happiness. The way you grasp opportunities from change will help to inspire others to do the same.
3. Develop your own coping strategy.
You must be able to help yourself before you can hope to help others cope with change. Consider the following coping mechanisms. They may help you live through the next major change in your organisation:
- Don't rush the change cycle.
Be aware of the four phases through which you (and your staff) will pass, to varying degrees, in coping with sudden change:
Denial - the announcement is greeted with shock, and a refusal to accept that it's happening.Resistance - acceptance is accompanied by personal distress, blame and complaining, even illness.
Exploration - after a period of struggle, you emerge from your negativity and move into a more positive, future-focused phase, attempting to find the 'best way' of coping.
Commitment - having weathered the storm and accepted the situation, you now focus on the new and pour your energies into it.
- Think it through.
Isolate yourself in a relaxed environment and jot down answers to such questions as these:
What changes can I expect? How reliable are my sources of information? Can I find better sources? What's the best thing that could happen as a result of the anticipated change? The worst? What tasks will be removed from or added to my current responsibilities? How will the changes affect my staff?
- Come to terms with yourself.
Now is the time to consider your future. Decide what you will be doing - staying, transferring, retraining, retiring, resigning… Your decision need not be permanent but, unless you are at peace with yourself, you'll enter the change process stressed and uncertain.
- Shine in a time of uncertainty.
A period of high change can be very good for your career. During this uncertain time, if you do your job very well, you will shine while others around you fall apart at the seams. So plan ahead; organise yourself; set up new systems to cope with the changes; and motivate your staff to shine with you.
- Discuss it with family and friends.
If the anticipated changes will mean extra work, stress, and anxiety for you, make sure your family members understand. They will feel more secure and better able to help you through a difficult time.
- Take up stress-reducing activities.
Eat right, organise regular physical activity, take vitamin supplements, find a few spare minutes to relax each day, and do the things you enjoy and which boost your energy.
- Remember your staff members.
What are the ramifications of the change for your employees? What information do you need and what must you do to help them cope with the changes?
- Stay organised.
Draw up contingency plans for everything you can think of. Allow time for anticipated problems, for the unexpected will happen although it will be easier to handle if you expect it.
