Why change nearly always fails
Divers and Employees
Professional deep-sea divers are trained to deal with tough circumstances. It is unnatural for human beings to be underwater for a long time. Oxygen cylinders, diving gear, and training are needed. When they have to dive very deep to search for a black box of a plane or to repair a pipeline, it can be dangerous. Many long-time divers are quite unhealthy.
They can get caisson disease, a condition resulting from a too- rapid decrease in atmospheric pressure, as when a deep-seadiver is brought too hastily to the surface.
Decompression is a must.
You will find a similar situation with a lot of employees. Why?
Through upbringing, education and the command & control style of management, most of us have experienced at least 25 years of conditioning. The conditioning that we are not good enough and that we have to work harder to meet the expectations of others.
Like diving, this conditioning is impactful, unnatural and has long-term consequences. Operating in such an environment is very unhealthy. Stress is the most common disease among employees (and managers).
7% of people were
hospitalized — because of workplace stress
50% had missed time at work because of
stress
People are quitting their jobs because of
stress
The business costs are enormous
~ Jeffrey Pfeffer, Stanford
Decompression is here also a must.
Why change nearly always fails
We constantly want to change people (and organizations) and are frustrated if that change doesn’t happen.
However, we don’t realize that people are already utterly changed, even to a point of saturation.
People are over-changed. Numbed by addiction and exhausted by meeting the expectations of others.
Conditioning by constantly telling people that they are not good enough, has made people docile, reactive, and risk-averse.
Conditioning actually freezes, embalms the status-quo and thus prevents change.
The more you condition people, the less likely it is that they CAN do what you want them to do.
Whether it is innovation, retraining, or any form of change - all share the need to remove the suppression of mental, emotional, spiritual and physical capabilities.
People need to be ‘decompressed’.
The straitjackets need to be thrown away, so they can return to their uniqueness and fully use their potential.
Uniqueness differentiates and is crucial for building a better world - together.
Do you want to Make Change Work?
Do you want to Unblock Your Uniqueness?