Embracing Change™
Change is inevitable and necessary for healthy growth. The problem is, it is not the actual change that is difficult for us; rather it is the in-between time before we actually accept the change fully in our minds. When we resist the change until it’s fully integrated – we are “no where between two somewhere’s” – the transition phase. In this transition phase there is an unease, the old is gone and the new isn’t fully formed yet. Most people want to go back to what was and others what to jump ahead and skip this vital phase. The transition phase is important not to rush. In this phase is where creativity is born, where the foundation to handle the change gets psychologically processed. One must become mentally and emotionally ready to handle the new beginning. Only after we have allow the integration of this stage, by accepting what the change means to us, do we transform.
To better understand how to move through potentially destablilzing changes in organizations, we teach teams what they can expect in the three states of change; the ending and losing of the old, transitions and new beginnings. We teach them how to navigate the terrain of each stage through the work of William Bridges, the preeminent authority on change and transition who transformed the way people think about change.
People within the team will be in all different phases. We openly dialogue about the actual changes occuring for the team as a backdrop for all the education about change. We look for symptoms on the team to know what phase they are going through and discuss strategies for support in each stage. In this we build the higher levels of connectivity, alignment and trust during uncertain times, having the team handling the changes together. There will be those still grieving what is gone and need a hand in accepting what is ending, others in the inbetween stage-the neutral zone resisting the complete uncertainity and chaos, and eventually as the team moves through these stages together they can be ready to mentally step into the new beginning with fresh eyes to embrace the new plan.
The work we do is the perfect mental and emotional companion to any organizatonal change management strategy a company is using.
