Welcome to the latest edition of our Ezine. Well the
clocks have gone back an hour, the dark nights are here with
a vengence & we’ve already enjoyed our first taste of snow!
One benefit of this is the chance to get settled on the sofa
with a glass of wine & enjoy a good book. Sadly in the Dennis
household it’s not ’50 shades of Grey’ or some other fictional
novel but more often than not a business related book
(sometimes I think I enjoy my work too much!). So this
edition has a polar theme to it as we take look at a great
change model that focuses on the human aspects of change
& also look at how we often misjudge others by failing to
understand their motivation.
Steve Dennis
2.
Then decide what to do:
3.
Next make it happen:
5.
I’ve just finished re-reading a book I rediscovered in our study
called “Our Iceberg is Melting” by John Kotter. It came as a
timely reminder to me about the important roles people play
during implementation of change & how they can react in so
many different ways.
Develop the Change Vision & Strategy – how will the
future be different & how will you make it a reality
“Change will not come if we wait for some other person or
some other time. We are the ones we've been waiting for.
We are the change that we seek” - Barack Obama
4.
Our Iceberg is Melting.
Pull Together the Guiding Team – ensure there is a
powerful team guiding the change
6.
7.
Communicate for Understanding & Buy-In – ensure
people understand & accept the vision / strategy
Empower Others to Act – remove barriers so people can
make the vision a reality
Produce Short-Term Wins – create quick, visible
successes
Don’t Let Up – keep on with the change & build on your
successes
“If you change the way you look at things, the things you
look at change” - Wayne Dyer
Finally make it stick:
8.
The book covers 8 key steps to successfully implementing
change based on the Kotter model & is told as a story about a
group of penguins whose iceberg is melting meaning a
significant change to their way of life.
“If you don't like something, change it. If you can't change it,
change your attitude” - Maya Angelou
So what is the Kotter model for change?
Create a New Culture – embed the new ways of working
by modeling the right behaviours, recognising &
rewarding the new ways & coaching when deviations are
observed.
“To improve is to change; to be perfect is to change often” Winston Churchill
Implementing change is never easy but it is often made more
difficult by forgetting about the human aspects.
Communicating & empowering people can have such a
positive impact on the results you wish to achieve. So before
rushing into a change take a step back & have a look at the 8
step Kotter model – if penguins can do it then you certainly
can!!
First set the stage:
1.
Create a Sense of Urgency – help others see the need for
change
Contact Details:
Telephone: 07837964616
Email:
[email protected]
Visit our Website:
www.dennisassociates.co.uk
Don’t be a Donkey!
Staying with our polar theme (bear with me!) I thought it
relevant to take a closer look at the human aspects of change
& in particular our own reaction to those around us. We are
often told not to judge a book by it’s cover but how often do
we make instant judgements on the behaviours & actions of
those around us.
human behaviour (MBTI, NLP, Belbin to name a few) & I
would certainly recommend them as a source of self
awareness.
Understanding others, their behaviours & actions is another
useful skill to have when implementing change. It’s important
to understand their motivation so that you can make the
appropriate intervention. You don’t always have to adapt for
everybody but at least with an awareness you have the
choice on how to react
So remember, never assume you know why someone acts or
behaves a certain way, step back & question what is
happening below the surface, what is driving that behaviour.
I’m sure you all remember that ASSUME = ASS of U & ME!
Don’t be a donkey, be an iceberg expert!
The important thing to remember here is that we only see the
tip of the iceberg when dealing with people (told you I’d get
there
). We only see the action or behaviour of the
individual and it is this that we then react to.
“Those who cannot change their minds cannot change
anything.” ― George Bernard Shaw
The thing is, if we understand what is happening beneath the
surface, what is actually driving that behaviour then we can
choose to react differently. It is at this ‘thinking’ level that we
need to intervene if we want to change the results we get
from others: Remeber it is THINKING that drives BEHAVIOUR
which in turn drives RESULTS.
If you would like to find out more about anything covered in
this issue then please drop us an Email or give us a call, we
are always more than happy to help you.
If you want more pearls of wisdom or inspirational quotes
then remember you can follow us on:
“We are all hypocrites. We cannot see ourselves or judge
ourselves the way we see and judge others.” ― José Emilio
Pacheco
Some of you may have been exposed to the SDI tool which
helps us to understand what motivates people, how they
think and therefore why they behave the way they do. There
are many other tools out there to help us to understand
You can also catch our Blogs on:
http://pyramid-builders.blogspot.co.uk/
Contact Details:
Telephone: 07837964616
Email:
[email protected]
Visit our Website:
www.dennisassociates.co.uk