Change models serve a critical function when thinking about change: They help us avoid false assumptions, and validate concepts that we suspect are true. And yet? There’s a gap between the ideas within the models and how exactly we bring those ideas to the specific change initiative we’re facing. In this webinar – Peter will…
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While models can be awesomely useful, they are ultimately just constructs that were created because they were relevant to someone at some point. What’s more important is understanding where our models come from in the first place: how they are created, how they evolve and what they connect back to. We forget their underpinnings at our peril. But unfortunately we do that a little too often.
We fall in love with our models, our processes and our standards. They’re helpful when they help us to make sense of the world, but they can also get in the way. What we sometimes forget is that they were all invented to provide a perspective on a problem. That means we can change them, adapt them, evolve them and dispense with them when they stop providing value.
Most of us like plans, and we like to plan. We like to know what’s coming, and where we are trying to go. And then life throws you a curveball, and you have to respond. A guide to navigating life when crisis strikes.
Yes, “why” is a problematic question. And in asking it, we run the risk of being seen as part of the problem. That’s in large part because we often fear the answer. We don’t have to, and there are choices in how we respond. We just need to be willing to make them.
“Why?” is a critically important question to ask. It’s a challenging one to ask at times, and sometimes it’s a more challenging one to answer. What is less expected is when the people asking the question are seen as part of the problem, and not part of the solution. That doesn’t mean that we stop asking why. But we may need to think carefully about the way that we go about doing it.
Culture matters. That might seem obvious to say, but we tend to ignore that when it comes to process design and organizational change. We can see that when implementing process, what works depends upon context. But the challenge is reading context accurately, and making appropriate choices that work. We need to lead with culture and follow with practice, not the other way around.
“Why?” Answer that, and you explain everything. It’s a simple question to ask. It’s also an incredibly difficult and challenging one to answer. It’s particularly difficult to answer honestly, in that we are frequently forced to challenge uncomfortable truths that we would prefer to leave unaddressed. At the same time, not confronting the question frequently…
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I have a confession to make. I abandon books. I used to read them all the way through, and now I often give them up part way. A spate of articles recently challenged me to question the practice, and whether I should doggedly keep reading.
Examples of bad writing abound. And in many instances, they are written that way on purpose. Why we think we are writing well, why we are actually writing badly and what we might consider doing differently.
