Change in Leadership.
On Sunday morning, I went for my run. I ran across a deer family with a couple of them who had an impressive set of antlers. I decided to change my route along the street, which is not my favorite, but it allowed me to continue my run. This situation got me thinking - what is my relationship to change?
Before I share my perspective on change, I’m curious, how do you see change? As an opportunity for innovation, to slow down, to reevaluate, or do you see it as your enemy? As a leader in your organization, how do you see a change? If you’re an entrepreneur - is it easy to pivot when a situation calls for it? Are you open to new ideas? Do you include others in the change, or do you prefer to do it alone and announce this is the new way of doing things? Or do you like to stick to the original plan even if it’s not the right thing to do?
At some point, I’m pretty sure we all found ourselves in a situation that required change, and some of us enjoyed change better than others. I used to be scared of change because I believed that if I had to change a course of actions previously agreed upon, I would look incompetent in the eyes of others. I’d judge myself for not being able to prepare for every worst-case scenario as if that were possible. For the longest time, I was terrified of change, so I wasn’t experimenting with other possibilities. I was too scared to be open to alternatives. I felt stuck.
As time passed, I started to change how I approached change. I gained more confidence in decision-making and pivoting when the time called for action. That change allowed me to see other possibilities and think outside the box. I also discovered a talent I had, a skill that continued to be very useful in situations that required change. I was good at brainstorming. But most of all, I was able to bring others to the table to lead a brainstorming session to solve the problem at hand.
So what changed in me? I challenged the limiting beliefs that kept me hostage, stuck inside my head, and paralyzed with fear of what others say or think about me and my leadership style. After all, I should have it all figured out by now if I wanted to lead a team, right? I should be able to predict all the worst-case scenarios and pull the Ace from my pocket when the time comes. I decided to change how I thought about something I had no control over. This came with a need for additional change. I asked myself who I was being when I was afraid of change.
Over time, I chose to stop being afraid of change. I started to see change as an inevitable part of my life. As a leader, I began asking others for help. I decided to show up open-minded, leading from my heart. The change was scary because now I was more vulnerable. But that change helped me bring people together to lead fruitful discussions, knowing that together - as a team - we had better chances of succeeding. The change and the vulnerability didn’t make me weak, flawed, or imperfect. It made me human.
The power of leadership is to bring people together in the face of change, whatever the difference looks like. As a leader, you can influence change in your organization, bring people together, encourage people to speak up, and by being vulnerable, admits that only by working together we can face the change and still be successful.
Where in your life - personal or professional - is there the possibility of making a small change or a new way of thinking that could help you overcome the fear of change?
