CHANGE
I have been on a deep dive into an area that has always fascinated me, and it has absorbed my thinking. So much so, that I have started writing my next book already!
CHANGE
Here's what's been keeping me up at night: Change. Especially when it's sudden, unexpected, and not exactly what we asked for. More specifically, how team performance is affected by transformation (new team members, new leader, hybrid working rules, differing agenda or priorities).
JASON
I used to see this a lot in my clinical days, working with guys like Jason (let's call him that), who was making a tough shift from military to civilian life. Imagine one day you’re handling bomb disposal, and then the next day you're suddenly back in an ordinary world that doesn't make sense anymore.
Jason's story, filled with bravery, heartbreak, PTSD, was like something straight out of a movie. Picture leaving behind a close-knit, back-having, purpose-driven team, and stepping into a life that felt totally foreign. Can you imagine? He described it as being terrified and relieved in equal measure.
I can tell you a hundred stories like that, and likely will in my next book (more on that in the coming weeks).
NEW-NESS (is that a word?)
I don’t mean to belittle Jason’s experience, but I reckon every organisation has a team now that has experienced upheaval and transformation in recent times. The best performing teams are gamely trying to adjust to ‘new-ness’.
What I have learned is that we all have different ways and different levels of coping with transformation and change. It is like watching people dancing at a wedding – the same song, but so many different dance moves!
Some of us can roll with the punches, others resist massively and even when our resistance causes greater turmoil than the adjustment would. Others see great opportunity.
WHAT I DO
I work with high-performing teams, working under high pressure and in fast-moving environments. I focus on the you-and-me stuff (not the technical, process or systems change), but the human-centric group dynamics that are so necessary of the best are going to get better.
I really believe this is the future of working, the future of leadership and the future of sustainable performance.
LET’S CHAT
I will be seeking conversations and stories of teams that are going through these changes. If you have a story you’d like to share (anonymously), I would love to hear from you.
And please feel free to share this with anyone you think might like to read it and join our conversation.