The silver lining around change
Early in my career, I viewed change as “bad.” Attached to change are often tough and raw emotions. It can be difficult to “sit” with these emotions and not “do” something when change is going on all around you, and you find yourself in the Valley of Despair.
I’m not talking about the changes we can’t control. When my father was diagnosed with pancreatic cancer at age 68, I was reminded that in life that bad things happen to good people, as best-selling author Rabbi Harold Kushner has told us in consoling millions around the world.
As leaders, we can take charge of change, or we can let change happen to us. We can view change as bad and negative, or as an opportunity. We can fight it, or embrace the learning and development opportunities inherent in every change.
Emerging from the valley of despair
When I worked on the corporate side, I recall being distraught when a key player on my team moved on to a new position. As only time would reveal, their replacement was stronger and even more competent than their predecessor. As the change was happening, I never could have imagined that possibility. I was lost in the Valley of Despair and couldn’t see the forest for the trees. In the end, the change was one of the best things that could have happened at the time for me, my team, and for the organization (not to mention for the person who moved on).
The Tony award-winning musical, Caroline, or Change, chronicles the relationship between an African-American maid and a Jewish family right after the assassination of President Kennedy. It’s a story of how relationships and life evolve in often unexpected ways. In one scene, Caroline shares this tidbit of wisdom that encapsulates the message of the show: “Change comes fast; change comes slow. Change comes.” In other words, change is.
What change might you be resisting today that could actually be a transformational opportunity?
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