Changing the way we change

Changing the way we change

Ashley Dobia Mwanza (inspired by a book ‘Leadership From Inside Out’ by Wesley Granberg-Michaelson)

We must start by looking up and out and not dwell on the down and in.

The “big questions” must be asked and when these are asked they bring into focus, the central purpose, or driving force of an individual, an organisation, and or a country. An individual asks , “what is my purpose?”, a company asks “what business are we in?”, a government asks “who are we serving?”.

“Big questions” seek to clarify a “vision” that inspires, motivates and energises an individual or an organisation. All visions should come in pictures and images rather than in mere words and rhetoric. All the lines may be neatly drawn in, but a sustaining vision will have an attracting, compelling power that will cause people to ask, “How do we get there?” “How can we best carry our mission?”. Simply put, vision means seeing something according to the way we believe it should and will turn out, creating a compelling and sustaining picture of our most desirable future.

“Without a sense of direction, it is impossible to tell a good wind from an ill wind.” People and organisations not forgetting governments will drift to and fro, tossed by every changing wind, unless and until they clarify what they are about and where they want to go. The main thing is to keep the main thing the main thing. The plain fact is that transition and change create anxiety, and anxiety is part of the human condition. Mission and vision are not enough, as important as they are, they alone won’t sustain the journey and or the transition.

The road will most certainly be bumpy. You can map out a process and a timeline for change on paper that looks very smooth and straightforward, just like plotting a route on a road map. There are too many variables for anyone to control, and many of those have nothing to do with the plans on ‘paper’. But once we have made a decision about mission and direction, keeping momentum moving forward toward that vision is crucial. So along the way we shouldn’t give excuses but learn to ride the storm. A journey of a thousand miles begins with a single step. To be continued....