Jones Loflin is an educator, business owner, humorous keynote speaker, and time management expert. In his article below, he provides the four key elements needed for successful change in business.
Determine The Need For Change
To affirm whether change is necessary; evaluate your current situation with the following questions:
- What are the facts that tell me that change needs to happen?
- What are the feelings I am experiencing that indicate a need to change?
- What wisdom do I have or experiences in my past that tell me change needs to happen?
Once you have established the need for change, clarify the outcomes from a successful with the change, what will you have that you don’t have now?
Lastly, ask yourself, “What is the danger of NOT changing?”
Enable Others To Adopt The Change
Make a list of everyone who will be affected by the change. For each person or group, ask:
- What are their fears related to the change that might hold them back?
- What resources might they need to be better equipped to work through the change?
With these answers in hand, begin developing a change plan that addresses their negative fears and offers the necessary resources to achieve success with the change.
Create a realistic vision of the change. In a time of change it is easy to lose sight of what people will gain as an end result. Let them know on the most fundamental (everyday) level what they will experience if they are successful with the change.
Adjust Actions To Align With The Change
Make two lists. One should have STOP at the top and the other list should have START.
For STOP, list all the things you, your department or organization needs to stop doing if you are going to be successful with the change.
For START, list everything that you, your department or organization needs to start doing if you are going to achieve success with the change. Begin developing the necessary changes in routines, procedures or policies that support these “STOPS” or “STARTS.”
Lead Others To Success With The Change
Throughout the entire change process recognize that you and others will need to take some type of
leadership role with the change. That means you will need to engage in four key actions:
- Create a felt need to change
- Introduce the change
- Revise and finalize the change
- Stabilize and sustain the change
Determine your own areas of strength and weakness as it relates to any of these four areas.
Your role is critical. As Alfred North Whitehead once said, “The art of progress is to preserve change amid order and preserve order amid change.”
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