People's #1 fear in life is public speaking (my career - crazy, huh?). Their #2 fear is death. Why do we fear death? Because we don't know what happens to us until after we die. Change is a big unknown, too, which is why many of us fear and resist it. We cling to what we know, even if it stinks, because we're afraid that what we might get will be even worse.
Now, imagine the entire way you've done your job for the last 20 years completely changing. That's the call I got a few months ago from a medical records team manager. No longer are there papers to be filed and doctor's dictation to be done - everything is electronic now, paperless. Needless to say, the changes this team was experiencing were major. Not only was their job and their entire work process changing, but also their work environment was changing. All the paper files that were surrounded them from the floor to ceiling were slowly going away, too.
When working with this team (and many others experiencing major change), I recommend one of the best resources I've come across on helping work through and lead change. It's a book by William Bridges entitled, "Managing Transitions: Making the Most of Change". (Check out a few of the articles on his website for more information.) Here's a few of my thoughts on the change process:
#1 - Let Go of the "Old" Way of Thinking and Doing Things. This is easier said than done - many of us, deep down, are hoping and thinking the change really won't happen if we just wait long enough (a.k.a. resist and procrastinate). Rather than focusing on what you stand to lose, focus on what you can gain and what you didn't like about the current way, anyway. Also, if you are leading the change, remember the more you involve the people impacted by the change in the change process, the more people will buy into the change and clearly see the old way needs to go away.
A quality manager at a manufacturing company I work with was going to make a big change. Instead of having two quality inspectors at the end of the line, he determined it would be more efficient to have one inspector in the middle of the line and one at the end of the line. This would, indeed, be a major change for his inspectors. We worked together on a plan to role out the change. He called the inspectors together for a meeting and started out by telling them the problem with the current way of inspecting AND got agreement from them that there was a problem. Then, he immediately explained the impact that this change would have on each one of them personally (not why it was the best for the organization or the rest of the manufacturing line, although it would be). The meeting ended with an action plan for implementation and this manager was shocked at how almost immediately successful the change itself was.
#2 - Confusion or The "Black Hole". We must realize that there will be some white water in getting from the old way to the new way. Most of the time, we don't just go from the way we used to do things to doing things a new way quickly and easily. The new way takes more time and is harder because we have to think it through and there's always something that comes up that wasn't anticipated. The key is moving through this confusion stage quickly, but helping people realize that it is completely normal to feel frustrated as you are moving through this state. As a change leader, the most important thing you can do to move through this quickly is communicate, communicate, communicate.
#3 - Creativity. Once we realize we're not going back to the old way and we're heading in the new direction, people start to show their creativity and make things happen. Let me give you an example. One of the doctor's office I visit (as a patient) also went through an electronic transition. I happen to be there the week they were implementing their new electronic tablets in place of the paper files. My nurse was noticeably unsure of herself with this new device and it took a few tries to get all the needed information in the right places. When I asked what was the hardest part about this new system, she said, "I miss using Post-It Notes on the patient charts to remind myself of things I need to ask." I completely understand, because I love Post-It Notes, too. When I visited a couple months later, the nurse was noticeably faster and more comfortable with the technology. I asked if she still missed the Post-It Notes, and she replied, "Let me show you something. Look! There are electronic Post-It Notes that look just like the paper ones and I can attach these right into your electronic file!" That's being creative and is definitely the beginning of a commitment to the new way of working.
#4 - Commitment to the New Beginning. Why in the world did we ever do it the other way or ever think this new way was so bad? AHHH! You've reached commitment. I think in our personal lives we go through the same change process - a new job, a move, a marriage or divorce, a death, etc. I think about myself and having moved to a new area when my husband and I got married - a very rural community (and a acreage in the country, none-the-less). I never pictured myself living here. Honestly, now I can't imagine being anywhere else. In change, people eventually forget that there was another way and eventually can't imagine changing from how things are today. But, guess what? Someday, undoubtedly this will change, too!
SHINE ON!
