Ch-Ch-Ch-Changes!
Success isn’t guaranteed in life or in business–but changes certainly are. And how we navigate those changes reveals a lot about us as individuals and business owners.
At For the Love of Systems, we LOVE talking about The Change Curve, and this week we’re going to leverage an understanding of The Change Curve to help us turn every change we encounter into an up-leveling opportunity.
The Change Curve describes the human emotional response to change, grief, or loss. It’s composed of seven stages and, while these stages aren’t necessarily experienced by anyone in perfect sequence, we will explore them in order today.
1.) Shock - surprise or shock at the event.
We’re all familiar with the fight, flight, or freeze response, but do you know which of the three you tend toward most often? How about everyone else on your team?
Knowing this about yourself and others who work in your business will help you better understand and support each other, as well as avoid conflict when faced with a sudden change.
2.) Denial - disbelief; looking for evidence that it isn’t true.
Are you the kind of person who can’t let go? How readily do you face challenges? When change happens, avoidance is often a mute choice, so reflect on your willingness to acknowledge change and whether or not it’s serving you.
3.) Frustration - recognition that things are different; sometimes angry.
Anger is always better food for thought than fuel for action–unless it’s a workout! Our brains use emotions to motivate actions, and the outcomes of our actions often reflect the underlying emotions that motivated them.
Developing and actively practicing skills to manage emotions of frustration and anger opens you up to options and choices in times of change that you would otherwise miss.
4.) Depression - low mood; lacking in energy.
At this point in the change process, personal empowerment is paramount. Giving up is not an option, but pivoting your approach and mindset is--always.
The great thing about mindset is that it follows our focus. Resource yourself with what you need to find the light when changes to your circumstances feel dark.
5.) Experiment - initial engagement with a new situation.
Action creates confidence. You fail at every attempt you don’t make. Necessity is the mother of all invention.
Pick your adage, but at the point of experimentation in the change process you need to be doing something different. And after you take action, notice what happens in yourself and in the space of the change you’re facing.
Was your action beneficial? Could it have been executed differently for a better result? Your job is to take action to find out.
6.) Decision - learning how to work in the new situation; feeling more positive.
It takes a while to get comfortable with new circumstances or a new way of thinking, but recognizing when your effort to adapt has benefited you will give you the confidence you need to continue refining your adaptive efforts.
This goes hand-in-hand with experimentation in the previous step.
7.) Integration - changes integrated; a renewed individual.
You made it! Sort of…
Integration is often only understood in retrospect, meaning it’s hard to tell in the moment if the changes you’ve made will stick. And if you find yourself slipping back into any of the previous stages, simply repeat the process you followed earlier to get back to an integrated state once again.
It may sound daunting, but mastering the process of change can be made much easier with some awareness about how you're showing up.
But what do I mean by “how you’re showing up?" I mean your behavior—which is fueled by your habits. And while they may seem mysterious and hard to understand sometimes since they’re subconscious, you might just be missing some key data about your habits that can be obtained with a fascinating assessment called Habit Story!
Want to learn more? We’re certified Habit Story coaches and absolutely love incorporating these insights into our work with clients. You can learn more about our Individual and Team Habit Profiles services here.
