"... expose ourselves to the winds of change."

Recently I was skimming a number of Andy Grove* quotes from his book "Only the Paranoid Survive" and kept coming back to this quote:

“The person who is the star of a previous era is often the last one to adapt to change, the last one to yield to logic of a strategic inflection point** and tends to fall harder than most.” 

(My interpretation - Do not assume that what has made you a star in the past will make you one in the future... because it may not - Forever search out how to do things differently and change with ever evolving situations.)

I also liked this quote:

“As we throw ourselves into raw actions, our senses and instincts will rapidly be honed again”

(My Interpretation -  Just put yourself out there in new situations and do it - you will quickly start making things happen and will get better as you go.)

And this:

“The ability to recognize that the winds have shifted and to take appropriate action before you wreck your boat is crucial to the future of an enterprise”

(My interpretation - Be aware of what is going on around you, be curious and don't dismiss the facts until it's too late to do anything.)

And this one:   

“Admitting that you need to learn something new is always difficult. It is even harder if you are a senior manager who is accustomed to the automatic deference which people accord you owing to your position. But if you don’t fight it, that very deference may become a wall that isolates you from learning new things. It all takes self-discipline.”

(My interpretation - Pride and Arrogance will prevent you from learning, growing and continuing your success.)

There was this one too:

“Strategic change doesn't just start at the top. It starts with your calendar”

(My interpretation - Stop talking about change, write it down and do something.)

And finally this one: 

“The Lesson is, we all need to expose ourselves to the winds of change”

(No interpretation)

gpe

* Andrew Stephen "Andy" Grove (born András István Gróf, 2 September 1936) is a Hungarian-born American businessman, engineer, and author. He is a science pioneer in the semiconductor industry. He escaped from Communist-controlled Hungary at the age of 20 and moved to the United States where he finished his education. He later became CEO of Intel and helped transform the company into the world's largest manufacturer of semiconductors.

As a result of his work at Intel, and from his books and professional articles, Grove had a considerable influence on the management of modern electronics manufacturing industries worldwide. He has been called the "guy who drove the growth phase" of Silicon Valley. Steve Jobs, when he was considering returning to be Apple's CEO, called Grove, who was someone he "idolized," for his personal advice. One source notes that by his accomplishments at Intel alone, he "merits a place alongside the great business leaders of the 20th century. (Wikipedia)

** A strategic inflection point can be defined as the time of transition of company's (or person's) competitive position that requires the company (or person) to change its (their) current path and adapt to the new situation, or risk declining profits (well being).

Self imposed change... something to encourage yourself to do.

Sometimes you just need some self imposed change... and I am not referring to taking a different route to work or having a strawberry shake instead of your usual chocolate; something more substantial:

• Sell your house and live somewhere new.
• Get an MBA to elevate your prospects.
• Take the package and explore new career paths.
• Take that job in another country.
• Buy a standard, even though you've only ever driven automatic. 

Ok, maybe switching to standard is not so substantial, but don't underestimate how tricky it can be in the beginning. My point here is that deliberately initiating change, the bigger the better, is important for growth, well-being and exploring this adventure we call life.

Let's take me for example... I am selling my house and moving. Although circumstances allow me to sell, I don't have to, and I'm not exactly sure where I would move to; still there is a sign out front. Here is my thinking, and I believe it is applicable to other substantial change events... in both a literal and figurative way.

• I will literally change my perspective of the world. I will move from a place where I looked at the world a certain way to where my perspectives and views will be totally different. I will literally see the world a "different" way..
• In dealing with the "different", I will learn new skills or at the very least sharpen my existing skills. As an extension of this, I will also break or at least challenge old habits.
• My ability to ADAPT will be challenged and strengthened. I believe adaptability is a skill we all need to develop for our ensured success.
• It will strengthen my planning, organization and execution skills. I rarely use the word "hate", but when it comes to moving I will say, " I hate moving... immensely! And with said, I will ensure I do this move as efficiently as possible, with as few issues as possible.
• It will be an adventure; I will find myself doing things I haven't done before to complete the move and once I'm settled, it will all be new!.

There is also one more thing and maybe the most important which is with self imposed change, you are in control (well at least the illusion of control)..but there will be times when big change is thrust upon you, and you are not in control (be it an illusion or not).

Self imposed change lets you practice for those times when opposed change come your way. And make no mistake, it will. 

Wish me luck with my move,

gpe 

They say they want different, but do they really?

The following is the original and the rewrite can be found by clicking here.

I heard someone say this other day, "People say they want a different way of thinking and operating at work; when it is offered up, it turns out they really don't". I have also experienced this first hand and want to ponder it for a while - At face value this simply doesn't make much sense... but then again, maybe it does. 

Humans have been very successful and are at the top of the food chain mostly because we have been able to control our environment - Be it keeping the rain off our heads, the wild animals at bay, or building a state-of-the-art process to manage customer orders and ship within 12 hours (guaranteed). We control and bring predictability to things. We are successful for it, and this "request for different" simply seems to flies in the face of it. So begins the "rub"*. 

This "perceived contradiction" is created as we work hard to bring control and predictability to what we do, and then want to work outside of what we have created to bring improvement and growth; all the while putting up roadblocks to prevent it from happening. Examples abound of "the wild project" that could not get support, but with some inventive "skunk works activity"** becomes a big hit that everyone rallies behind. The fact that no one originally wanted it, is forgotten.  

I call this a "perceived contradiction", as this dynamic may seem as much, but will argue it is more of a check and balance to manage success and sustainable growth - Successful and viable businesses need to have systems, processes, operating mechanisms, business rhythms and measures that are all in control or they simply will not be sustainable. The coveted new idea or different way of thinking can, and will play havoc on the way a business is run if not kept in check. These roadblocks that arise and push back on a "different way of thinking" are to vet out what is viable and what is not. Simply put, the good will find their way, and the bad will "die on the vine". 

When you hear someone say, "They want a different way of thinking" or "They want to do things differently" take this into consideration:

• They truly mean it.
• Up front you should know that anything new, different, and "outside the box" will be challenged, dismissed, and you will hear various versions of the word "no".
• The burden is on the person with something different to "sell it", not for others to "buy it". 
• Without breaking the law or the guiding principles of the company it is "on you" to make it work... this is where that expression "Good People Find a Way" probably came from.

So how do you work through this "perceived contradiction" to make different a reality? Success stories abound, so know that it is done all the time and these are a few things that come to mind: - 

• Be persistent. If you are not willing to be the champion and a loud advocate, it simply was a "passing idea"
• Not everyone will say "no", search them out and leverage their voice, skills and funding (if they have it) and build momentum.
• Just make it happen and prove its success. You know that old adage "It's better to beg for forgiveness, than ask for permission". ***

So good luck with your different ideas and remember - The company is truly a a safe place to vet everything out, as when you get into the open market, it is a ruthless, hostile and unforgiving place.

gpe

* An idiom derived from how irritating it is for the animal when you rub it's fur the wrong way, 

** A skunk works is a group of people that, in order to achieve unusual results, work on a project in a way that is outside the usual rules.

*** There is no doubt that there is "risk" that comes with this, but anything worth doing, always comes with risk.