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by Donna Lamothe, CD, CMAChange is an inevitable part of life. We cannot stop change but we can decide how we will react to it. And how we react can make or break us.
There is a race held each year in Australia that is 600 miles long. The runners run for 18 hours, sleep for 6 hours and then get up and run for another 18 hours. Several years ago, one of the competitors showed up in his rubber boots and overalls. He was well over 50 years old and, as you can imagine, stood out like a sore thumb among the rest of the competitors that were there in their light weight running gear and expensive shoes. Before the race began, the press asked him: "Have you ever run before?" To which the old fellow replied, "Yes." He was then asked: "Where have you run before?" And he answered: "I run with the cows." Needless to say, people began to make fun of him.
The race began and 600 miles later, the old man in the overalls and rubber boots was the first to cross the finish line. Not only did he win the race but the runner-up was 24 hours behind him. The press rushed to interview him afterwards and they asked him, "So, what is your secret?" He said, "Well, I ran until I was tired – then I rested, then I run some more - then rested." They asked, "What about your 6 hours of sleep?" And he said, "Sleep! I didn't know I could sleep!"
Sometimes it is the way we see things that prevents us from accomplishing and learning new things.
Change is an inevitable part of life.
My father was in the RCMP and so we moved around a lot. Each time we moved, everything would change, my friends, my school, my church - and it changed quite often. When I left home, I joined the armed forces where I had some further job changes, environmental changes, location change. As a result, I am an advocate of change because it is a reality of life. Change will happen wherever you are.
Change is not a choice - but how we handle it is a choice.
The seasons are changing whether or not you think they should. The temperature will drop whether or not you decide to put on your winter coat. You can choose to be miserable and cold when you are outside or you can put on something appropriate for the weather. The growth in the use of computers is another example. Some people love it, others do not. But it is happening nevertheless. How we choose to react to it is our decision.
An interesting illustration of how a large group of people reacted to change is found in a book called Dying for Change by Lease Anderson. In it he says, "At 5:04 p.m. Pacific Daylight Time on Tuesday, October 17, 1989, the earth shook under the San Francisco Bay Area. At Candlestick Park, the Oakland Athletics and San Francisco Giants were getting ready for the first pitch of the World Series." Some of you may remember this game. "Suddenly the lights flickered, steel girders holding the upper deck began to sway, and pieces of concrete tumbled down. The announcer told spectators to leave but when the initial quake ended, the fans began shouting, ‘Play ball.' Meanwhile, north of the ball park in the Marina district of San Francisco, houses shifted off crumbling foundations and buildings collapsed, gas lines exploded and fires spread. Across the bay in Oakland, commuters were crushed to death as a mile-long section of Interstate 880 fell on rush-hour traffic. By 5:05 p.m., the lives of thousands of people were altered forever because of the powerful changes beneath the earth's crust. Simply saying ‘Play ball' was not enough to counteract such cataclysmic forces. When change occurs, we have many ways in which we can respond – but one thing is impossible. We cannot stay the same; we cannot stop the clock of change. If we choose to respond by doing nothing, change will take control and impose its will."
We all need to be proactive and I want to encourage you to consciously consider changing your life and your role in it. Perhaps for some of you, just being open to the idea of change and consciously thinking about it will be the first change that has to happen.
How Do We See Change?
It's important to view change as a positive thing.
My husband loves Al Jolson but we don't listen to his record anymore. The reason we don't listen to the record any more is because we bought the CD. The CD has the same message and the same music but it is clearer and sharper. The record was a good thing - and during its time, it was the best thing but something new has come along that allows us to see the picture and the music of Al Jolson better.
Often change is improvement.
If we go in with the thought that change is a good thing, then we'll be able to use change to our benefit rather than detriment. You can probably think of other examples of change as a positive thing. You may think of a fax machine which allows you to scan information very quickly. A favourite of mine now is disposable diapers.
I entered Military College in 1980 and many senior cadets thought that women entering an all-male environment was a terrible mistake. Personally, I saw it as a good thing for the military. I felt that Military College would be a great training ground for working in other male dominated fields. Graduates were expected to lead, to work with and for a variety of people in the marketplace after college, a reality they would be better prepared for if women were part of their training.
There were other benefits that accompanied the entrance of women into Military College. Prior to our arrival, some of the traditional initiation or hazing practices were removed. With that in mind, think about the changes in your work environment. Maybe you are looking at a change, big or little, and you are thinking that can't possibly be good. That is how a lot of those male officer cadets felt at that time but now realize that the change was good. Choosing to see the good in change is an important and healthy attitude to nurture.
What about when change is forced upon us?
Although change is inevitable and it is often positive, there are many times when change is not. Sometimes it can be negative. My husband's father went through some changes that climaxed in 1985. He lost his job at the Ottawa Journal where he had worked for 32 years. One of his daughters had decided to move to Trinidad with her children where he would seldom, if ever, see them. Another daughter decided to openly live a gay lifestyle. He had no control in these major changes. In a desperate attempt to deal with those changes, he decided to end his life and committed suicide. My encouragement to you from that example is not to be a victim of change. Don't let change in your life come to the point where you feel that you can't handle it. Know that your circumstances and environment will change again. Be proactive, don't be a victim of change.
How do we do that?
The acronym CONTRIBUTE will summarize how to be proactive with change.
First, I would encourage you to contribute to change. Be a part of it rather than a bystander.
The C stands for Communication.
Sometimes I think that my husband Rick should know exactly what I'm thinking, and I shouldn't have to tell him. I wish that were true but it doesn't work. Often I have to communicate to him exactly what I want him to know that I'm thinking, feeling and what I want to do. The messages must be clear when dealing with change because there are consequences to poor communication.
The O stands for Other points of view.
You have heard the expression that two heads are better than one and that has often been my experience. When you are getting other points of view, you are creating a climate of acceptance in your home or in your workplace that is important to the people around you.
The N stands for Needing vision.
Whether you are an advisor or whether you are actually a decision maker is not the bottom line. The bottom line is that as an advisor or as a decision maker your input is important. When you are considering change, advising your boss, or making a decision, have vision. Be able to see past your limitations, which is again the example of the runner in his rubber boots and bib overalls. An incredible change agent is Jesus Christ and he took 12 people, trained them and changed the world. The introduction of Christianity to the world changed many lives and the course of history.
I would caution you to have a Thorough understanding of what you are doing and that is the T.
I would encourage you to consider the consequences of what you are doing. Know that if something has extreme consequences then you need to be more cautious. But, on the other hand, don't let that paralyse you. Be willing to risk when the circumstances allow you to do so.
The R stands for Resist going in many directions.
The book of Proverbs which is a book of wise and intelligent things says, "A fool starts in so many directions." I'd love to change all of the systems in our accounting department but we have had a high turn over recently. With all the people that are coming and going, it is not the time to make major changes. I have to put my plans on hold while we make people changes. So, resist going in too many directions at once.
I stands for Investigate the feelings of others.
If nobody seems to see your point of view, then maybe you need to reconsider it. If you are the lone bird flying in the sky, then maybe you should have headed south a month ago. You should just look around and see why nobody sees what you see. On the other hand, don't surrender your agenda to whiners. Don't allow people that are negative anyway to bring down your ideas and your motivations for change, so keep a balance in there as well. Often, as in anything, there is a balance.
B is Be generous with credit.
Ronald Reagan says, "It is amazing how much you can get done if you don't care who gets the credit." If you allow people in your organization to get credit for their ideas, then they will give you more ideas. People need to know that their ideas are important. Be very generous with credit. But the same does not hold true with blame. As a manager, you'll have to accept responsibility for those experiments that don't work but be free with the credit when they do work.
Understanding your organization is next.
Look at what your purpose is, look at what your goals are, and allow change to happen in order for those things to be accomplished.
T is for Timing.
Don't wait until the horse is dead to get off. Try and foresee something happening a little bit earlier than that, perhaps when he is limping, it is a good time to get down and see what's wrong. There are actually three times in the life of a business for example when change is normally acceptable. First is the honeymoon stage when everything is new and exciting. Second is the crisis stage when it is too late to make good change and the third stage is the climate of change. I would really encourage you to have a climate of change where you work as well as where you live. Allow things to be reevaluated and looked at on an ongoing basis so that you don't arrive at the point where things are beyond your control and feel beyond repair.
The last letter is E and that is for Effort.
Know that your effort will be worthwhile. It is important to carry through to the end or else you may miss opportunities that you otherwise might never get. As many parents have said, "A little hard work never hurt anyone."
Change is inevitable but we must choose how we will react to it. We must not allow ourselves to be victims of change. Instead, we should strive to be proactive and to contribute to the process of change. As you can tell, I am an advocate of change because it is the means to improvement. I hope that you will consider how change can be your ally rather than your enemy.
~ Donna Lamothe is a former Finance Officer and Captain with the Canadian Armed Forces. One of the first women to enter and graduate from Military College in St-Jean, Quebec, Donna has led armed troops, instructed in basic survival skills and provided financial forecasts and analyses for National Defence Headquarters. She currently works as a Management Accountant for a nonprofit organization.
