Altering the status quo is part of leadership.
Spotting new opportunities, identifying ways of improving current practice and learning from mistakes are all part of leading a team. Unfortunately, to do anything about them, we have to ask people to change.
I’ve always been fascinated by how much I need comfort in my life. And, because my self-employed life brings with it little comfort, I create little routines that allow me to go on auto-pilot (kind of) every day.
I always have breakfast in exactly the same place and the order in which we have our food and then our coffee is always the same, and accompanied by the same shift from the table to the sofa. I’ve now started writing at 8am (just for half an hour, don’t get too excited) and it’s remarkable how easy this has been, probably, because there are so few things I consider “routine” that I’m quite excited to be doing one of them.
I have a couple of exercise lessons I take in the evenings and I have now filled two other evenings with my own “course” on virtual teams. This is not really a course, but just an hour and a half I’ve put aside for myself to study. If I don’t do this, it will never get done. The solid thinking that comes from sitting down with a textbook and a notepad is often replaced by the skimming of articles on the internet or trying to read a pdf on my tablet. It’s not the same. That’s not how I learn best. A book, pen and paper work best for me, so I’ve finally put some time aside for them. Knowing that every Monday and Tuesday at 6pm I will be at my table with some books, makes me feel safe.
So, as change is part of my life and I know relatively well how I deal with it, I’m always fascinated by those who rarely experience it. Change can be uncomfortable (it definitely takes up more energy than doing something we already master) and so it will be difficult to lead. Add to that the fact that a lot of people in organisations have “change fatigue”. You might have come across it, it manifests itself in something like “Yes, but they (it’s always “they”) already tried changing this and changing that, and in the end everything stays the same.”
But some people manage to change things, for the better – and unfortunately, sometimes for the worst. But let me be optimistic. If you are someone who doesn’t mind ruffling a few feathers or who just can’t stand it when you know that something has the potential to be better if we just try doing things a different way, then I hope this course I created last year will be of help. It’s mainly for managers in organisations, but the content is suitable for anyone who wants to make a difference and needs to take people with them.
The course is hosted on the platform Udemy, which is a MOOC site which just keeps going from strength to strength (they treat us instructors quite well!). If you go to the homepage, you might find a discount code, as they have really good offers regularly. But if you can’t find a code and would like to take the course now, click on this link and you can have it for $9, instead of $19.99. My gift to you for stopping by.
Think Write Draw 