Growing up I lived in six different states and as a young adult, I chose to move to what would be lucky number seven – the Great State of Texas. Moving so much as a child I learned that I can do anything for a specific amount of time. Working outside my comfort zone day-in and day-out is only an issue for me if I cannot see a light at the end of the tunnel. I tend to handle change and stress better than most (you build muscles where you regularly flex them).
I learned to navigate change in my life by acknowledging my mistakes, forgiving myself, assessing my current situation and mindfully making decisions and a new plan for my future.
One of those decisions was to change career course from marketing to human resources (assessing where I was and deciding where I wanted to be professionally). In the area of human resources, I have become recognized for my strengths in change management. I believe this strength comes from my experiences – moving a lot as a child and other significant personal transitions. I built a muscle for change and how to manage it – both personally and professionally.
Through the years I have come to enjoy change as well as transition. I had a senior leader at one company I worked call me out in a strategic planning meeting, “Janell is the only person in the room who actually likes change.” I knew then that I was in the wrong room. Change is not easy, but it is inevitable. And in my first leadership role, I worked for a CEO who lived by the mantra that “change is good,” and I agree. I have realized you can view change as something that happens to you or something you assess and make mindful decisions to work with. I look at change as an opportunity to learn and grow.
I like this quote by William Bridges: “Change is situational: the new site, the new boss, the new team roles, the new policy. Transition is the psychological process people go through to come to terms with the new situation.”
During a personal change in my 20s, I sought the help of a therapist. Through these therapy sessions, I was introduced to the change curve. The original change curve was developed by Swiss psychiatric Elisabeth Kubler-Ross during her research of death and dying – the model is also known as the 5 stages of grief or loss. This change curve is used regularly today when managing change and transitions – whether in business or personal life. Change is situational – an event. Our personal transition or journey is the process we go through as a response to change. The model provides insight to the emotional journey that we experience when coping with transition and change. (There are many great articles on and around this change curve, the model and how to use it. See references and sources below.)
With the significant societal changes made over the last years, we all experienced significant stress, and we all handled this stress differently. Your personal journey along the change curve would look differently than others since we each have individual experiences and respond to change differently. You could have gotten stuck in one of the first three stages. You could have wavered – moving back and forth between stages. But almost all of us have gotten through this period of time and integrated both personal and professional changes in our lives.
An article I read via www.therapyworks.com described “14 Qualities of an Adaptable Person.” I want to share a few of the qualities that resonated with me – you can find a link to the full article below:
- Adaptable people see opportunity where others see failure. I learned to forgive myself for mistakes which has been invaluable.
- Adaptable people think ahead. I write my goals every year. While they may change, I am mindful of my future.
- Adaptable people don’t blame. Change does not happen to me – I make change work for me.
- Adaptable people open their minds. Change is good and I believe that.
- Adaptable people know what they stand for. My beliefs may not be the most popular or in vogue, but I stand firmly by them.
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