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Change & JoyWith every change introduced in the workplace, there’s an opportunity to grow trust, strengthenrelationships and build a thriving culture in the process. Most people understand that companiesneed to evolve to meet the demands of business. Most people want to be part of companies thatevolve and grow. People don’t always like change but it’s usually not what is changing that’supsetting. People get upset by how change is handled. That’s when you lose them. How youintroduce and lead change has a lasting impact on your culture.Joy at WorkWe see Joy at Work as this…The premise of Joy at Work is not about joy in general but what helps humans thrive in theirwork. In the research, we’ve identified 10 dimensions that cultivate a thriving workforce:Participationan employee’s willingness to invest their unique capabilities and energy tocontribute to achieving the group’s goal.Commitmentwillingness to remain focused and keep promises even when achievingthem becomes difficult and requires additional effort.Accountabilitywillingness to be held to promises made that are expected of their role andof those they declare publicly.Trustwillingness to risk being dependent on others for their personal success.Belongingwillingness to be part of the group with the purpose of delivering theirunique capabilities toward achieving the group’s goal.1 www.thechangedecision.com

Cohesionwillingness to work with the group as a united force to achieve the purposeof the group.Adaptabilitywillingness to consider new information and make a personal adjustment inservice to achieve the group’s purpose.Growthwillingness to improve, explore, learn, integrate new information, and takeon bigger and more complex tasks.Respectwillingness to demonstrate an understanding of the unique value of others.Integritywillingness to behave ethically and in accordance with a moral code andpersonal set of values that are aligned with the group’s values.The presence of these dimensions is certainly about how a company is cultivating theenvironment but it’s just as much, or even more, about an employee’s willingness to act in theseways. In other words, a company’s culture can be designed to create the conditions for thesedimensions to exist but that’s not enough. The employee must be willing to act and contribute inthese ways.The Joy of Managing ChangeA few common scenariosProblem 1: How do I implement a change decision I was not part of making and maybe don’teven like?Some basic philosophy:● It’s not unusual to find yourself having a negative reaction to a change you were not part ofmaking. At the very least, change can be annoying because now instead of optimizing yourwork, you have to think about how to do the work itself. This can feel unnecessarilydisruptive, especially if you don’t understand the decision or don’t agree with it.● If you’re leading a change you dislike, this is even more stressful. In this situation, takingcare of yourself matters for your own well being and for how well the change goes.Technique:● Implementing the change decision you were not part of making means focusing on theintent and specifics so you know what to do:○ What is and isn’t changing?○ What will you need to do differently?○ What’s in the way that needs to be addressed in some way?○ What details are still to be worked out?○ What are you empowered to decide to implement the change?2 www.thechangedecision.com

○ How does this relate to the bigger picture of the company? How does it help withachieving the current business objectives and the overall direction of the business?○ What benefits are expected?○ How soon does this need to happen, what are the dependencies and what can youuniquely do to make it happen well?○ How will you lead this change with others?○ How will you and others know you’re collectively making progress?● The answers to these questions will help you come up with a plan. Even a very simple planis useful. Often not all of the questions can be answered initially because typically newinformation is learned during implementation. Because implementing change is a learningprocess, it’s important to stay aligned with others and revisit and adjust your plan as thechange progresses.● If you recognize that you don’t like the change, you can start by reflecting on why to helpyou manage your mood:○ What’s bothering you about the change?○ Were you taken by surprise?○ Did you have completely different expectations?○ How different is the change decision from how you identify your role, business,company?○ Is your ego getting in the way?○ What is the worst case scenario? How likely is that to happen? What can you do tomitigate the worst case?○ What are the opportunities for you and others? How likely are they to happen?What can you do to make them happen?● Once you’ve reflected on the situation, you can decide how to approach the situation:○ Take steps to reduce the likelihood of the worst case scenario.○ Talk to others about your concerns and offer feasible suggestions to address them.○ Look for the potential positive outcomes as a place to focus your energy.● If you need to lead others through this change, think about how they’re impacted andwhat they will need from you:○ What will they need to do differently?○ How big a change is this from their point of view?○ How do you expect them to react? Why?○ How surprised are they likely to be? Why?○ What will they need to understand?○ What support will they need?● Once you have a better understanding of the impact, decide how you need to show up foryour people every day. When change is announced, people pay even more attention totheir leaders because they are seeking to understand how to be successful in this newworld the leader describes. People will notice your words and actions and take that as aqueue for how they need to respond.● Creating a good outcome for others is a strategy to stay focused when you’re strugglingwith a change. You may also want to take extra steps to take care of yourself and find3 www.thechangedecision.com

someone that can be a safe place to talk through and make sense of what’s happening asthe change progresses. Leading a change you dislike is a highly-stressful situation andsomething every leader faces in their career at some point.Problem 2: How do I recognize if I’m resisting a change or if something else is in the way?Some basic philosophy:● There are often very logical explanations for having a negative reaction to a changedecision:○ Previous changes have gone poorly○ Changes have been announced in the past but didn’t happened○ Changes with promises of big outcomes were made but fell short of expectations○ You feel like the impact to you and others is not understood; you don’t know how tomake that clear or what you’re empowered to do about it○ You’re annoyed because rather than optimizing your work, you have to think abouthow you do your work○ You feel like a beginner, rather than the accomplished professional you’ve workedto become● Clarifying what’s behind your reaction can help, as well as giving yourself a little grace. Webelieve that everyone’s point of view is valid, even if we don’t understand or agree with it.It’s a reflection of a person’s life experience. This is a useful mindset when implementingchange at work, for both interpreting how others are reacting and your own reaction.Technique:● Walk through the self-reflection questions offered in the previous scenario.● If the way previous changes have been handled are a concern for you, think through whatyou could do to create a different outcome this time. Talk to others about this to see whatcomes to mind for them. Focus on what you can control and influence rather than what’soutside your control.● If you feel uncomfortable, like a beginner or just generally annoyed by the disruption,reframe the change as a learning opportunity for you. Create small, doable goals foryourself to make progress on what you want to learn from the change.Problem 3: How do I see the possibilities for increasing my joy every time something changes?Some basic philosophy:● With every change there’s an opportunity to increase your joy and the joy of others. Oftenyour attitude toward the change makes the biggest difference in how well it goes.● While change can feel like it’s being done to you, it’s also a time of possibilities. Whenchange happens, it often means that things you’ve wanted to change for a while can be partof this change. Maybe you’ve wanted to change a process or change the way you work.These can be made part of the change outcomes.Technique:● Explore the potential positive outcomes for this change:4 www.thechangedecision.com

○ What are the opportunities for you? For others?○ Imagine yourself in six months thriving in the new situation. What’s happening?What are you doing? What is your vision of an ideal future?○ What excites you about the vision?○ What could you stop doing or start doing to make this happen?○ How can you make adjustments over time so that it’s not too disruptive for yourselfand others?● Explore the potential for growing joy in your work and work relationships:○ When do you enjoy your work most? How can this change help you expand that?○ How can you contribute joy to your colleagues during the change?○ What could you do in this change to strengthen trust in your colleagues?○ How could you lead this change with others in a way that positively impacts theculture?5 www.thechangedecision.com

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