Driving change is filled with lots of ups and downs. The high that comes after a big win. The pit you sink into as one after another obstacle is tossed in your way from the heights of the organization. It’s not how you feel at this moment, high or low, that matters. What matters is […]
Back in 1982, during his last testimony before Congress as an active-duty naval officer, Admiral H. G. Rickover claimed he coined a term, “Say-Do.” He meant the term to refer to those people who say they are going to do things, receive praise from the people who hear them say they will do things, yet
On most days, the hardest part of driving change is admitting people’s right to their own free will. You might be saying to yourself, or to whomever will listen, “Why don’t they…” or “How could they…” In the rush for results, we want others to do things now. Now. Now! The reality is, they must
Initiative is a little like creativity in that both require curiosity. Not the search for the “right” answer, as much as an insatiable desire to understand how something works and how it might work better. The difference is that the creative person is satisfied once he sees how it’s done. The initiator won’t rest until
Starting doesn’t mean controlling. It means initiating. Managing means controlling, but that’s an entirely different skill.” – Seth Godin in Poke the Box I’m no longer surprised when people who’ve spent their lives around driving people to change (i.e., forcing change upon others) assume the worst intentions of these new people driving change (i.e., choosing
There are few days where you will receive strong, immediate feedback that what you are doing truly matters. Though they are few, celebrate them, treasure them, and keep remembering them in your mind. On your roughest days, remember them again. Keep driving change.
Though they are few Read More »
You haven’t really lived John Kotter’s 8 steps for leading change until you’ve experienced Step 6: Generating Short Term Wins. If you haven’t experienced it, let me share a bit of what it looks like, sounds like, and feels like. You open your e-mail to find your inbox a buzz with messages darting back and
Many organizations stop their changes too early. Someone writes an instruction and the boss signs the instruction then the task is done and everyone goes back to life as usual. Did that instruction create change? Could you see a difference in the organization’s behavior because of the new instruction just by it being signed? Probably
Seeing the difference Read More »
In my last post, “Life Outside the Fences” I introduced you to the concept of an organization made up of sheep, wolves and a new addition: sheep dogs. Tonight I want to elaborate on that concept and dive into the minds of the wolves. First, how do you define who is a wolf? You can’t
The Wolves Are Afraid Read More »
In organizations there are often only two groups of people; the sheep and the wolves. The sheep are the people fenced in by their boss’ orders and their job descriptions, held fast in their pens by the roving wolves who are ready to bite at the ankles of any sheep that tries to do something
Life outside the fences Read More »
