Working through Change

Why is change so hard? I’ve been talking with quite a few people recently who are going through some kind of change. Whether it is personal or professional, by choice or not, there seems to be a common desire to fast forward to more settled times. There is not the sentiment of wanting to cling to the past. The desire is about moving to a place where everything is better and less chaotic.

Many years ago, I was exposed to the work of William Bridges and his book Managing Transitions. But even with the understanding that transitions are psychological, I find myself saying the same things as others. “I just want to get through this” and “I want to be in that place where this is behind me”.

I recently pressed the reset button on my career. It isn’t that I long to go back to my last job, I just want to be through the hard part of this new adventure. I realized that isn’t going to happen overnight. Even as a friend was saying how she wanted to get through her grief and move on with her life, I counseled her that as difficult as it is to experience, she had to go through the process of grieving.

And it is a process. There’s no guide or step-by-step to move through transitions. There’s no “just accept it” and you’re able to move on. You have to do the work even when it is hard and scary or maybe even a little exciting. Fear cannot guide the process. As Bridges explains, between the ending and the new beginning is the “Neutral Zone”. It feels more like the discomfort zone.

Too often in organizations, we forget about the transitions people have to go through when changes occur. We tend to communicate this is what we are changing to, get onboard. When it really isn’t that easy. Yes, employees may accept the change, but are they truly engaged and committed to making it work? That is why the transition process is so critical.

Giving employees context and “the why” behind the change helps make the transition easier. Yet we also have to give employees time to process how things have changed and what has changed for them. Even with positive changes, people still need time to process and let go of the past. They need to able to understand expectations of them and commit to the future.

The next time you or someone you know is going through a change, remember Bridges opening sentence of Managing Transitions, “It isn’t the changes that do you in, it’s the transitions.” Be patient and help lead them through that transition.