Change is going to happen – we all know that intellectually. However, when we have built up a comfortable life, or a comfortable belief – we do not necessarily “know” this emotionally. We are afraid of what could be on the other side of change. And the longer we resist the change, the stronger our fear becomes as we conjure up further negative permutations of the change.

One of our Change Management consultants rightly describes Communications as the most powerful tool in the Change Manager’s tool belt. Without effective two-way Communications (meaning that questions and feedback make it back up the chain from a push-out messaging strategy), stakeholders will have little to no confidence that a change initiative is set up for success.

Why is it liberating to recognize that Change Management is a process? To know that we don’t have to be “born” with something, that we can “learn” it, allows us to use our growth mindset and frees us to try, assess, and improve on things. Understanding Change Management as a process to be learned can then follow the Focus on Improvement Virtuous Cycle.