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The X factor

Last time I was sharing some of my personal angst at life in general and maintaining a change management website in particular! And may I say a quick and sincere “thank you” for the kind messages I received from a number of people.

As I sat here (metaphorically) crying pathetically self-indulgent tears into my coffee, I was sounding off about the feeling of disconnection that I was feeling, and that we all experience; about how we have maybe lost the connection in communication; and most importantly, that dialogue is the key to communication and especially in change initiatives.

But there is a deeper truth I feel…

The theory and the processes of change management and change leadership are important – but this is not the whole picture.

There is more.

What I was groping for last time, what I was struggling towards articulating – it was a bit like trying to grab a bar of soap in the bath in the dark – was that “something”, that dynamic, that dimension, that “X factor” beyond the theory and change management process.

So I ask you:

Could it be that the feeling of disconnection that we so often experience in life and especially in situations of change, and the lack of real dialogue that we experience in our organisational environments is at least as much to do with how we are – our inner condition – as it is to do with the external stuff that is impacting us?

This may not be quite as esoteric as it sounds.

There is a growing movement towards the exploration of a more intuitive, collaborative approach to leading and managing change, illustrated and exemplified in the work of Holger Nauheimer – co-creator of The Change Journey:

“Organizations and individuals can only master change processes when they are ready to find their own path. The journey then is constructed from something we already know as well as from that which is unknown. The journey teaches us.”

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“Take a look at yourself and then make a change”

The late Michael Jackson was not known for his change management expertise but he was on to something with his song “Man in the mirror”.

Change leadership at any level requires some very special qualities in the people leading the change.

This is much more to do with "being" than "doing".

What I do – what you do, and how we do it, will be largely determined by HOW we are as people.

"I'm starting with the man in the mirror
I'm asking him to change his ways
And no message could have been any clearer
Take a look at yourself and then make a change"

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3 Videos

I would like to introduce you to the work of film-maker Nic Askew:

(1) How significant is a leader’s ‘inner world’ to performance?

‘Might the inner condition of a leader show up in those around them?’

(2) What is it that followers actually follow?

‘Might followers follow the way leaders act, and not the words they speak?’

Here is a video I made a few months ago with an accompanying article (the pictures are all of the Clevedon coastline):

(3) Do we really manage change? – The Tao of Change

"Could it be that we are change?

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3 Articles

(1) Leading Change - The Man in the Mirror

(2) Don't Confuse the Map With the Territory

(3) What is Noetic Science and Why is it Important to Change Management?

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1 Recommended external resource

This blog is an excellent and highly commended leadership resource.

Big Dog and Little Dog’s Performance Juxtaposition

Many thanks to subscriber John-Myles Black for bringing it to our attention.

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1 Excellent Blog Article posted on this site this week

How to Achieve Corporate Responsibility

A very relevant and insightful article in the light of the BP disaster in the Mexican Gulf.

Many thanks to subscriber David Frood for writing and contributing this piece – some very interesting follow up comments.

Have a good week.

Best Wishes
Stephen

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Stephen Warrilow
Lynton Glenthorne Ltd
2 Beach Mews
The Beach
Clevedon
Bristol BS21 7QU
UK

+44 1275 349878
+44 7860 215986

Strategies for Managing Change

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8 FREE Introductory Lessons for Practitioners Masterclass

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Burning Question?

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Or, what is your most burning question about being on the receiving end of change...?

What is Your Most Burning Question?

Alternatively, if you prefer email me direct at stephenwarrilow(AT)tiscali.co.uk

Resources

This book will dramatically reduce your 70% chance of failing - either as a change leader or a change survivor.

• You will be shown what to ask and how to act NOW - for immediate results - rapid results can be key to your survival and success

• You will be educated to challenge people and know what the right questions are to ask - a key survival skill

• You will understand the core and universal principles of successful change and how to adapt and apply them to your own organisation - to misquote the former US defence secretary - you will know the "known knowns and the unknown knowns"

• You will understand the strengths and weaknesses of popular change models - you will gain understanding of the holistic view - how it all hangs together - can I share a dirty little secret? No-one - not even Kotter or Bridges has a monopoly on change management "truth"... the key is knowing what matters, when it matters

  8 FREE Introductory Lessons for Practitioners Masterclass

• You will be equipped to challenge prevailing assumptions and to facilitate discussions with colleagues [up + down the line] - extremely useful when your neck is on the line

• You will have a language and framework to articulate sensitive issues - essential when dealing with the messy stuff

• You will have the tools to "health-check" your own plans for a change initiative - and the tools and processes - all ground out of hard painful experience - to ensure you don't make mistakes I have made - and that you succeed both personally and organisationally

• You will gain insights into original perspectives, tools and processes never published before - ideal if you are a student or undertaking some form of higher business education - a fast-track to a good grade on your course.

  8 FREE Introductory Lessons for Practitioners Masterclass

"This is an excellent reference for anyone involved in change management"

[Mike Pollard, Business Analyst, Business Improvement Unit, Information & Communication Services, University of Dundee]

See here for full information - or click on image above left

I can de-risk your initiative by making sure that you anticipate and resolve the issues that derail so many initiatives and lead to that 70% failure rate


Specialist support that:

• Focuses on the areas outside of the scope of traditional programme and change management methodologies

• Gets "under the radar", "behind the lines" - and does "whatever it takes" to ensure that you DO succeed and DON'T become part of the 70% of failures:

  # Before you have an issue - to anticipate it
  # When you have an issue - to neutralise and resolve it
  # After you’ve had an issue - to ensure it doesn’t happen again
  

Click here for more information and to contact me now

Pay It Forward

If you are finding this ezine and my website of value - may I ask you to email this newsletter to friends and colleagues with a brief note indicating that this may be of interest to them?

They can check out the site - via the links in the resources section below - and then, if they want to, they can subscribe and receive their copy of the free report that accompanies this ezine.

Thank you

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This 29 page document is a brief introduction to some of the key themes and key points that you need to consider in starting the change process.

# Assessing the case for change

# The single biggest issue re managing change

# 8 key strategies for managing change

# 4 key steps to incremental change

# The 3 Keys to realising the benefits of step change

# Recognising the emotional dimension of leadership

# How to reduce the risk of failure of any major business initiative

See here for full information - or click on images above left or below

PLEASE NOTE: If you experience any difficulty with any of the links above - cut the WHOLE LINK and paste it directly into your browser.