Change - not again! Part 2

Change is inevitable, we would like to avoid it, but the best thing that we can do is to embrace it.
Can we be better at it? Let's find out together.
I'm Yuen.
It's Mike. Welcome to The Imperfect Clinician.
The skill of change can be practiced in a number of things, actually.
I think it's more than most of us think.
I think that learning something new is a kind of change that we do most likely willingly,
because we want to learn something, learn to play a new instrument.
Go to a dance class or start dancing, knitting, if you've never done it before.
I mean, let's face it, the resources now available online can really teach us to do a lot of things
that we would have never thought, because people couldn't be bothered in the olden days
to go to a library to learn how to knit.
Now, probably even I could start to knit, watching some TikTok videos
that's going to teach you that in less than a minute.
And it might be no cost as well.
Yeah, the cost doesn't necessarily have to be included.
I mean, there are apps that can teach you languages on a basic level for free as well.
What about painting?
I think it's important, what you've mentioned, is to go outside of your comfort zone.
Whether you learn a dance at home or go to a dance class and learning to not be in control all the time,
you are showing your brain that that is not a threat.
Well, I'll tell you what I was forced to do.
When I had one of my wrists in plaster, in a cast, I was told that I should start writing with my right hand.
Okay. He's left-handed, by the way.
And I did.
It was awful and horrible, the writing.
I mean, even my normal writing is rather difficult to read, so we say.
Average is really stretching it to levels that we'll never reach.
But I think that this was the change for me, and I was much slower.
But as I was writing, I can't remember how old I was. I must have been 11, 12.
It was still in my primary school.
And I started writing with my right hand.
And although horrible and quite clunky and quite illegible,
after a while, it started to be easier and I got a bit quicker and it looked a little bit better.
So I wouldn't want to repeat it now.
These days, you have got more keyboards where it doesn't matter.
You can use a stick to poke it, to write on, to type on it.
But at the time, being forced to it, I wasn't particularly fond of, you know, writing in school.
Absolutely, you know, as young children.
Everything, not just writing, because if one hand is in class, it's everything.
Well, you are forced to do other things as well.
But writing is something that you thought you could avoid, you know, for a while at school and have a bit of a leeway with it.
But no, that wasn't meant to be at the time.
They weren't very understanding.
And I think if you don't want to take on something like a class, then you can do smaller things that can be done as part of your day.
Like we said, using a different, your non-dominant hand to brush your teeth.
Use your non-dominant hand to hold your cup and drink.
Or if you really want to, write, if you have a chance to, most of the time I'm just typing.
I was forced.
So these are small steps that you can shake things up for your brain.
It's just like, imagine going to the gym for your brain.
And there are apps like Brain Train or Luminosity.
The latter is free.
It allows you to just practice as games for your brain.
Just to touch on different awareness, like spatial awareness and other forms of it, which is quite fun.
Maths is very good because there is some research that says that if you are doing some maths in your head over a longer period of time,
that can even postpone or eliminate dementia.
Because you keep your brain constantly teased in a way that is stimulating it.
So I think I read somewhere that there is much lower rate of dementia in accountants.
People who are with numbers, living with numbers.
I don't know how peer reviewed it was and I don't know if it was ages ago, but I thought, hmm.
I wonder what it's like after they've retired.
Yeah, I mean, that's what I'm saying. You just carry on doing your numbers, doing your tables.
So we talked about personal change, the barriers and ways to practice the skill of change.
And those are important building blocks.
And we need to understand those before we understand why organisational change is even more difficult.
Because imagine the fears that we talked about in our previous episode,
and you extrapolate it to a bigger organisation where you have everyone's fear involved.
So why is there so much resistance to change in a workplace?
I think there are a lot of fears involved.
And Rosabeth Kanter's article about 10 reasons people resist change in Harvard Business Review was very comprehensive.
So there are fears about more work because change is indeed more work.
And we need to acknowledge hard work of change by rewarding participants.
Why is change so important in the organisation?
Because we want to have a developed and agile, progressive and adaptable workforce.
And change is inevitable.
And if you have a team or a culture, an organisation that embraces change, it benefits all parties involved.
So from an organisation perspective, it improves employees' productivity, improves processes and making the organisation more resilient.
And when you improve productivity, you would improve profit.
And in exchange, the employees will then feel empowered, their confidence will improve and it will boost their satisfaction.
Especially when they have a shared vision at work within the culture of growth.
So what should we avoid?
We need to avoid stuck in your own ways.
Like you said, good old days.
Most likely the people that say good old days are the people that are stuck in their ways.
And working in isolation, working in silo, that is definitely not going to work.
So if you're not part of the solution, you're part of the problem?
Yes. There is no in between.
No in between.
So what steps do you need to consider when you are implementing change in an organisation?
There are lots of different change management models, I guess.
But what I wanted to talk about and what I've listed out is what I find actually helpful and has been beneficial to galvanise and influence people for change.
So the first step is definitely defining your vision and goal.
And so you are defining the benefits, the outcome.
So vision and goal is like the overarching definition.
And then you go into what's the benefits, what's the outcome, what's the timeframe, what's the target and how are you approaching it or how are you getting there?
So a roadmap is helpful for people to see it, to visualise it.
In terms of point A, this is what we need to do, point B, this is what we need to do.
And I think it's impossible to start any change without analysing data.
And we need to analyse who are the stakeholders.
We talked about ripple effect in our previous episode.
So think about the ripple effect of different stakeholders.
Think wider than you would because it will impact them.
And we need to assess what is the change maturity, change capability and readiness of an organisation and how it will impact everybody involved.
And I think it's really, really important to understand what's the culture that you're in to implement the change because you want to align it as much as possible.
That's right. Building the right culture and the right behaviours in a team can be, well, very important in the success of any change.
Exactly. And once you've done the analysing, I think the next step would be the planning.
That's where you get to the details from your vision to reality.
And you align your strategy with the culture and making sure you are aligning with everyone involved from leadership to people who will be actually doing it and driving it.
One more thing I think is valuable here in this context as a step is to engage.
And engagement with communication, working with a team to address the fears and try to understand them first.
To build momentum if not employees will feel left out and even resenting the change.
So I wouldn't recommend to surprise people, do it gradually.
So engage wider stakeholders to minimise any potential disruptions, be honest and transparent. I think that's the best advice.
So you talked about addressing fears, so I think fears will be the biggest barrier for people resisting change.
What type of fears have you come across?
We looked at Rosabeth County's article in Harvard Business Review and she lists 10 reasons why people resist change.
So there are fears that there'll be more work.
Definitely, because there'll be definitely more work with change.
But then we can perhaps acknowledge some hard work by rewarding participants.
Yeah, that's one of the tips on how we can address it, absolutely.
There is also fear of being not competent because you have new things coming and you feel like you may not be up to par for the challenge,
for the new skill set required or new knowledge that's going to be necessary to deliver the project, for example.
So then training and support system that's in place, maybe mentoring, all of that would be useful to help address those fears.
Fair enough.
What about loss of control? I'm used to being in a driver's seat, that's what I've been doing so far in my job,
and then all of a sudden I may not necessarily be. How do you answer to that?
I think it would be a good idea then to invite them to the planning stage and give ownership and autonomy.
So making sure that their ideas or concerns are being addressed and they feel part of the change process,
instead of being put upon them saying, you just have to do it. They are actually part of it.
And I think that will have a big impact on the engagement side because we're communicating with people regularly.
What about uncertainty? Because that's always a fear of any change.
Yeah, I think for me, I can see that being mitigated by giving certainty of process.
So in some ways I give very simple steps. This is what you need to do, A, B, C, D, E, and this is the timetable.
By when, and then in between, still have regular checkups to see whether they're okay.
Open the communication channel.
Yeah, so these were a few of the fears that may appear when you come across change or the change is coming across you.
So there is a risk of a pushback, especially from people who have witnessed change or some kind of changes in the past.
And it was delivered very poorly and that can make them defensive.
Yeah, and I think for that, that's when the honest and transparent bit comes handy
because it's to discuss what went well and what can be learnt from it constructively
because I feel that we almost need to address those before just jumping on a new venture.
So when we were talking about having people being part of the planning process,
I think when you aim for co-production, it's crucial because you're increasing engagement
because you are looking at new or improved ways of working.
And I guess when you have different people planning the project together,
you have different perspective or wider perspective of risk assessment and mitigation
because what I can see will be different from what you can see.
So that's really important before we look at implementation and by addressing the fears in some ways,
we're trying to address those fears, reassure and then generate commitment and drive.
And it's crucial to sustainability.
Yeah, so then once we've done that, we move on to the execution stage.
And I guess this is where the empowering, the coaching for skills that we've mentioned earlier on,
and we need to make sure that people's capabilities are being developed.
That's important to make people feel that they are supported in every step of the way
because you might come across people with different level of capabilities.
Tracking progress and success, so ensuring everyone has tools needed
and making sure that you set clear goals to follow.
And that should also encourage collaboration.
Yes, that's why we say working in silo is not a good idea because you need to work together creatively.
After the implementation stage, what do you think we need to do next?
We have to reassess really where we are
and see whether there are any tweaks and refinement that we need to put in place
and if there are any improvements that are still required,
just to do an honest analysis of where we are,
just to adapt here to make change more adequate and relevant.
Absolutely agree with that.
So in order to do that, we need to make sure there is a system in place
to allow regular communication, problem solving,
because that's when something is started,
however much that you predict the risks, there will be some unpredictable ones.
So how can we problem solve it?
And how do we keep testing if we make minimal change,
major change based on problem solving or based on any concerns that are raised?
How do we refine it even further?
And that is an ongoing process.
And then what after all this implementation?
What do we need to do next?
You've mentioned about sustainability.
So I think that's really important.
There's no point in that change being started, done, but then it's not long lasting.
So I think it's important to share successes, positive feedback, reward or recognition.
There definitely will be mistakes happening along the way.
Be open about it.
Hold your hand up and be held accountable, be responsible for it.
But also learning from mistakes.
And by doing that, we have a chance then to evaluate any needs or gaps.
And perhaps those needs or gaps might be providing ongoing training
and champion continuous innovation.
Because when it's in motion, that's when new ideas comes up,
that's when new ways of thinking comes up, that's when new collaboration comes up.
And people will think, oh, why don't I try a little bit of this and maybe make it more efficient?
And lastly, I think communicating.
So making sure that you're keeping your ears on the ground.
Don't think, oh, it's done, that's it, I'm stepping back.
There's no need to take care of it and keep track of what's happening.
What challenges can you come across in implementing change in the organisation?
I would say culture that we talked about in our previous season.
Team culture can be a make or break for a place where change has been very resistant
and always been frowned upon, like we don't do it here.
That's not our way of doing it.
We're traditional.
Yeah, that makes it very, very difficult.
What do you think?
Yeah, I think it's important to understand that the world changes and we are part of change.
So if it's embedded into team culture that it is the part of the progressive part of the world we live in,
it's easier to overcome and digest, really.
There's also a question always about making sure that the vision is clear.
A vision presented by leaders is clear, that there is a purpose in it.
And also, on the note of being clear, that there is a clear leadership.
I think that's also quite important as well.
Poor communication can trip everything up, anything that we do in organisations,
but I think that part of the communication is also diversity of thought.
And if there is no diversity in the views, it's very hard to land it on a team of people
who are just supposed to follow one rule and one rule only.
Agree, then we can see a bigger perspective and avoiding people that will feel left out
or perhaps people that will be impacted by the change but their views not being included.
Because that's not very empowering and that's another barrier to success of change
where the team members are not empowered for it.
They don't have the right tools, they don't have the right understanding
and that can be a big barrier, a challenge to any project.
I think there is also if there is a lot of hierarchy in place.
Because you mentioned about communication and so, besides breaking down of communication,
it might be the flow of communication is very slow because it has to go through
different levels of gatekeeping or hierarchy.
It should be a smoother flow of communication.
Yeah, we discussed before the need for a bit more lateral and flatter leadership communication channels.
Yeah, and I think the other challenge is not making any change sustainable in an organisation
because then you've done all the work and then you don't see significant change.
And so, people who are involved might feel quite defeated because there isn't enough
momentum to keep it going and it's extra work for no real results.
I think it's worth also to note here that sometimes small incremental changes with time
and they are often a function of time can lead to extensive lasting changes in the organisation
and those that are sustained.
I agree because I prefer to see it as a renovation.
So, instead of a total demolishing the building, I want to improve a small bit at a time.
I know not all the time that is possible, but by doing that I can improve engagement with the team
because I would much prefer to be people oriented.
So, we talked about the technical and adaptive challenge from the personal perspective.
What about the organisational one?
I think this is something that all leaders have to keep in mind that sometimes the change
that you see straightforward might not be straightforward for somebody else.
So, if you see that challenge as technical for you, it might be adaptive to somebody else.
So, I'll share a story.
Quite a while ago now, I had a trainee who was new to the team.
The trainee was wanting to be integrated as part of the team as a team player.
The trainee had no problem with it, blended them all with the team, getting on well with everybody.
Part of the progression is for the trainee to be a leader.
The trainee was really struggling to be a leader.
So, we talked about plans, potentially how to approach it, taking on different projects, leading on it.
Then, a month later, we were still at the same point.
It wasn't lack of opportunity or lack of chances for the trainee to step up.
So, then I was trying to assess whether it is more of an emotional or fear-driven behaviour.
So, when I explored the emotions and the fear, the trainee then started to open up and ask questions like,
how can I lead them when they're here longer than me and they know more?
There is also some level of cultural background for respecting the elderly
and for that trainee a personal, innate reaction to being a leader.
So, not really comfortable in telling people what to do or delegating in that sense.
So, we have to address that fear and where and why in terms of where it came from and why before we can proceed any further.
That's why when you help support, mentor, coach people in challenges or if you want them to step up,
making sure that you think of it from both, is it from a technical challenge for this person or adaptive and your approach will be different.
So, if you want to have more help with dealing with adaptive challenges for your team members or people in the organisation,
there is a brilliant diagnostic test for immunity to change in the book that we've mentioned called
Immunity to Change by Robert Keegan and Lisa Leahy, that diagnostic test.
It's great for leaders, team members if you want to progress further.
Can you tell me more about this diagnostic test?
So, it's four column essentially and it talks about your commitment, what you're trying to do better.
The second column is behaviour that work against the goal and the third is having hidden competing commitments.
So, opposite to the first column and the fourth ones are big assumptions.
So, when you explore that in a bit more detail, it's quite a deep digging exercise.
By that, I mean you have to be personal about it, you have to be vulnerable about it as well in order to see progress.
But it is life-changing for not just you as a leader or just you as a team member, but also for the organisation.
Because if you do it as a team, it will change the culture in a way where people know why you're struggling and they will hold you accountable in the gentlest, kindest manner.
I think we covered quite a bit about change and in our own imperfect way tried to condense what's the most important about it.
And of course, there is plenty more to talk about change.
Let us know what change was easy for you, let us know what change was difficult.
Is there any fears that are more prominent in your case?
We're always curious to know what you feel after listening to us, so please let us know.
We're going straight to you in reads and we'll see you next week.
Before that, have you got any fears, any fear of change for you?
For me, a change that I have always dreaded, a fear that I have always dreaded was losing eyesight.
Okay, I can see why.
Until next week, bye-bye.
can coexist and the contrast is so stark that made me felt a wave of emotions when I go through the journey with those characters.
While feeling sorry, empathetic, disgusted, and heartbroken all in one paragraph, it provides a great insight to the difficulty of human life when encountered with cold-bloodedness.
But also allowed me to experience the warmth of kind-heartedness.
It's understanding history alongside human stories.
And I definitely think this is something if you want to explore House Witch besides reading the history book, an interesting insight to it as well.
Thank you for listening to the Imperfect Clinician podcast.
Grow and learn with us using our experience and flaws just like we'd learn every day about ourselves.
The best way to support us is to hit that follow or subscribe button.
Thanks for your participation in our socials. We take to heart the ratings, reviews, and comments.
The best way we can repay you is by making this podcast better and by reaching and inspiring more people like you.
Like us.
Until next time.