Everyday Changes

There's an old proverb that says that the journey of a thousand miles begins with the first step.  When we talk about changing the way we do things in our business processes or for our own person work tasks, it often seems as if we are talking about changing the very fabric of the company or the way we work.

What I wonder about the way I work - and by extension they way we all work is - what small change will I make today?  This week?  Evolutionary evidence suggests the early earth stood stagnant for millions of years and then burst into new and interesting life, and the cycle of long stagnation and short bursts of evolution repeated.  That may work well for an entity that expects to exist for well over 4 billion years, but I doubt it's a good model for the evolution we need as we seek to improve personal and workgroup productivity.

Most evidence shows that people get comfortable with what they expect will happen.  If we set the expectation that change is inevitable and we need to constantly change the way we work and our business processes, then people will come to expect change.  Perhaps then they will welcome change and not fear it. 

It seems to me that change should start with each person in their existing roles.  What would happen if in your yearly or quarterly review the "boss" asked you the following question - "What changes have you made to the way you work, and the way the organization works, to make it and you more productive?"  If change is no longer thrust upon the individual but becomes an expected action and is compensated appropriately, the pace of change will increase dramatically. 

Each of us needs to identify the areas of our work life where real change is possible and begin working everyday to make the incremental improvements which will help ourselves - and our companies - become more productive.  If you manage people, be sure to ask them - what are you doing differently today to become more productive?  If you work with business partners or vendors, ask them - what can you do to help us become more efficient and productive. 

Rather than evolve through giant leaps - which by the way required massive destruction and large scale death -let's evolve a little each day, every day by communicating our expectations that the firm and the people in the firm will change, should change and are expected to change.