Do we really want change?

The news just broke for me in this lonely hotel room in Colorado Springs. Every station has the same headline: "[insert network] Projection: Barack Obama elected President."

For some, a victory of hope. For others, a loss of faith. But whatever side you are on, we must all admit it is a new time for us. We have arrived at a point in our history where we have never before been. The times ahead of us truly bring us to new ground.

And wasn't that what we were all supposed to be wanting to hear? Weren't we all supposed to be wanting change? Isn't that what we all asked for? We all wanted things to be different, didn't we? Isn't that what brought cheers from both the red and the blue crowds? Both sides promised change. Both sides said things weren't going to be like they were before. So ... I guess we are going to get it. Aren't we?

And that got me thinking .... Did you get as tired of hearing about change as I did? I have to be honest. Maybe I am the only cynic here, but I am not confident that we really want change. And, as a result, I am not so sure we are going to get it.

Change is hard. Change is inconvenient. Change interrupts. Change demands. For change to be effective, it must resonate throughout its entire scope. It must be allowed to have its effect.

We know that. Down deep, we know that. I can't really change my life if I don't change my habits or my attitudes. We can't change our performance if we don't change our practices or our methods. And we certainly can't change our cultural norms and patterns if we aren't willing to change our opinions of ourselves and our beliefs.

Frankly my concern is that we are not ready for any of that. We are happy to talk about it. We are quick to call for it. We are comfortable with promising it. But we are not ready to do what it really takes to make it happen. And I see evidence of that every day as I work in organizations.

Organizations claim to want change just like the red and blue crowds. The banners of these organizations call for greater market share. Higher employee morale. Enhanced quality. Increased customer satisfaction. In reality, however, none of those are really change. They may be the results of change. They may be the benefits of change. They may be purpose of change. But they are not change.

That is where the first indication of the fatal incongruence is revealed. Organizations are quick to create compelling mission or purpose statements for change. Many even contrive wonderful labels for the change initiative, like 'Project Excellence.' Certainly none of that is necessarily wrong. But the label should only be put on something substantive. And that is the nature of the incongruence for many organizations. The purpose statement behind the change is vague. The strategy for achieving it is non-existent. And the solution (often prematurely chosen) is completely misaligned with the fundamental objective stated by the purpose.

So these organizations buy new tools. They redesign their logo. They train alot of people in the methodology de jour. They choose new fonts and colors for their marketing materials. They reengineer their sales message to use new market buzzwords. They reorganize their staff. The result is a lot of fanfare. The result is alot of distraction. The result is alot of new stuff that kind-of, sort-of sounds like it might mean change. But there is no real fundamental change.

And when that becomes evident, we do it all over again.

Have we become afraid of change?
Are we too lazy?
Are we shortsighted?
Have we lost sight of anything that is cogent enough to compel us?

Maybe all of it is true.

That is why we need a bold leadership. One that can articulate a clear and cogent purpose. One that can design a tangible strategy to realize the purpose. One that can engineer solutions that support both the purpose and the strategy. And one that can facilitate the change necessary to see it through.

If we are going to realize our vision ... if we are going to achieve our goal ... if we are really going to get to where we want to be, we must embrace the fundamental reality of change. And we must be willing to address the barriers to change.

Otherwise, forget the initiative. Save the money and the goodwill. Don't get everyone all excited about a new reality, and then fail to provide the bold leadership to see it through.

That is as true for our organizations as it is for our nation.