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The Challenge: Surviving & Thriving with Change
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By Joan Grobb Augustino, Author, Trainer and Professional Speaker
(905) 892-4202,
joan@coreperformancegroup.com
(Editor’s note: For this edition of Apropos, we asked Joan Grobb Augustino, personality expert, Master Trainer, Certified Career Development Facilitator, and personality specialist, to write on the subject of change. Joan invites your comments and questions on what she has to say.)
We all deserve to enjoy our work experiences. But, in the face of constant change and increased demand for a higher, faster-paced performance, work can become difficult and our lives can become stressful.
It’s not the same old workplace anymore. It has shifted from an industrial-based economy to one fuelled by knowledge and information. The power structure has changed from those “who have been there” to “those in the know”.
It’s no wonder we sometimes feel overwhelmed!
How we handle these changes can be a contributing factor to work satisfaction and personal success. Change can be a barrier or it can be seen as an opportunity to develop new ways of achieving your goals. Here are five Survival Strategies to help you through the changes at your work and in your life:
Survival Strategy #1:
Change makes us feel uncomfortable. Expect some discomfort, it sometimes can’t be avoided. Information about the change reduces the discomfort and can help us through, even when the facts aren’t what we would like to hear.
Ask questions. Gather facts. Separate the emotion. Accumulate enough details to get a clear picture.
Survival Strategy #2:
We often focus on the losses, not the gains. Grieving for the old is part of the change process. Don’t try to sell the benefits of change until you recognize what you have lost. Only then are you able to see the gains.
Grieve, vent about your losses, and then move from pain to gain!
Survival Strategy #3:
We often feel we are alone in the change. Use the human resources around you. Realize others are in the same boat and are probably experiencing similar emotions. Talk about the change with others. Help each other to get through it in a positive way.
You are not alone. Realize that we’re all in the same boat. Help each other.
Survival Strategy #4:
We all have our limit to just how much change we can handle. If you try to do too much too soon, you will most likely fail. Many small changes over a reasonable time is better than trying a big change overnight. Break down large changes into smaller, more manageable components.
Set realistic objectives and priorities for change. Be patient with yourself.
Survival Strategy #5:
We are all different and that’s OK. Some people are natural risk-takers, others need time to plan. Some like to talk the changes over with their team and still others need time to think about it. Get to know YOUR strengths, accept the differences of others and allow yourself the opportunity to grow less-developed skills.
Celebrate your strengths. Accept the differences of others. Diversity will create harmony in music and at work!
In closing, remember that change is guaranteed, so anticipate it, plan for it and assume a change adept attitude. After all, you’re a survivor, aren’t you?
Copyright Joan Grobb Augustino 2004. All rights reserved.
