A630.6.4.RB – 50 Reasons Not To Change The Tribes We Lead
Today,
if I hear someone presenting one of the fifty excuses not to change, it really
aggravates me because I feel people are so closed-minded. Nevertheless, a few
years ago, that would have probably been me as I used to have a big problem
when it came to changes. I have to admit that is not all gone, as I continue to
battle my fears to change but I really push hard to be optimistic about new
challenges. The one saying I really dislike some colleagues using when change
is approaching is, “that is not the way it is done, and you have to follow the
same procedure.” When I am at work and I find myself with an old system that
could potentially be changed for the best and others can benefit from it that
is when I like to work harder to make changes. Needless to say, it is easier
said than done. Usually, my coworkers, or employees who have worked in my
organization for a longer period of time show very little patience and resist
the idea of change. That makes me angry because I feel I should be the one
fitting against it yet, I push forward to change.
When
growing up, as it was the usual, my father used to change me from schools very
often. In order to make him stop, I would try to come out with any excuse to
make him reason that his idea was wrong. In one opportunity, I remember
clearly, I told him, “we’re doing all right as it is” (Watkins, 2011) there is
really no reason why we should move again. I felt as if he was taking a huge
part of me and living it behind. In the end, all his effort thought me good
lessons and made me a better person. As it is mentioned by Donald R. Brown
(2011), everyone goes through a series of phases when it comes to change and
that is, “change introduced, forces identified, direct conflict, residual
resistance, and change established” (p. 145).
“Changing
an organization involves modifying its existing systems, structure, and culture
to some different standard or level of performance. The purpose of change is to
increase the organization’s effectiveness or even to ensure its survival”
(Brown, 2011, 146). Therefore, in order to overcome the thinking that create
the negative responses to change, I usually concentrate on the positive aspects
that this change will bring. In some occasions, change is necessary and leaves
us no option but to take it. In that regard, I take change as a means to
survive or as a means to get where I really want to be. Change in my opinion,
should be taken as an opportunity to explore other horizons. Sometimes, we are
too narrow sighted and we forget to check the “big picture.” Overthinking about
the stresses of change can only bring frustrations, and sometimes is necessary
to jump into the unknown without asking questions and follow you gut instinct.
Do
tribes drive change? Seth Godin had a really good point about
tribes. He stated that people that have an idea are going to find
something worth changing and assemble a tribe and spread the idea, which in
turn spreads the movement. Change can only happen if the leader is able to
convince a tribe that what is about to change is worth the challenge, and not
merely forcing the tribe to make those changes. Therefore, when I am at work, I
will always strive to provide people time to assimilate the changes instead of suddenly
abruptly changing their routine.
References
Brown, D. R. (2011). An experiential approach to
organization development (8th edition.). Upper Saddle River, NJ: Prentice
Hall.
Watkins, D. (2011). 50 reasons not to change. Retrieved from
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