Siamo’s April 1st School of Change Management

Change is Easy, Don’t Let Anyone Tell You Otherwise

The only constant in life is change. Because it’s so common, humans expect it, love it, and - let’s face it - are great at it. 

To ring in April and help make the world’s easiest job (change management) a little easier, we’re here to share the only tips anyone needs to successfully enact any change - big or small.

Don’t Ask, Just Tell

One trick to change is that people only transform when they see the benefit and feel bought in. Thankfully, garnering buy-in is a very simple process - just tell the people they have to change.

They’ll get it. People love to be voluntold and presented with one option they will be strong-armed into with no other choices. Having choices leads to analysis paralysis and indecision; having every door but one slammed shut makes the “decision” easy.

When you go to a restaurant, do you like having many options and descriptions on the menu? Of course not. Menus are terrible. Your individual tastes, allergies, and preferences are nothing compared to the unmitigated joy of having to eat whatever someone else decides. 

One for All, All for One

When it comes to communicating a change, everything can be accomplished in a single email loosely detailing the change. Don’t worry about refining the message or getting specific. Send out a free-flowing brainstorm about what you think should change - people will love the authenticity of seeing how the sausage is made. Throw some mixed metaphors in there to drive your meandering point home. After all, you can’t make an omelet without crying over the spilled cake you can’t have or eat. 

You might start asking yourself questions like: How many people will be affected by the change? How will their lives change? How will each group of stakeholders change? When will this happen? What changes are dependent on other changes? What information do you not have yet? Who can help fill in the gaps? Who could be an advocate for this change?

Those questions are hard, but there’s an easy answer - it doesn’t matter. A change is happening, people will find their way on their own. After all, they’ve already bought in by being told they will have to change, now’s the time to emphasize their autonomy by letting them change however they need to (as long as it accomplishes whatever has been put in the singular email).

Consider the ease of planning a wedding. Yes, there needs to be catering, flowers, a venue, blah blah blah. Just send a mass email letting everyone know the date and that it will be a wedding, everyone else will figure out the details. After all, they are professionals! 

Simply Assume

You know what they say about assuming? It makes A Super Star out of yoU and ME. 

In the rare instance that someone may start to resist a change, you may start to wonder why. It may seem easy to ask them about it, but fear not, there is an even easier way. Take your first thought about why it’s happening and assume you are right. Is it because they are stubborn? Out to get you? Willfully ignorant? Fill in all the details without diluting your assumptions with fact or curiosity.

This is how all the best journalism works – sources and truth pale in comparison to hunches, judgments, and unchallenged biases. 

Remember Change Management Is Like Dental Hygiene

As simple as change is, sometimes there just isn’t time to pencil all these communication steps into your busy calendar. That’s totally fine! Just like dental hygiene, there are simply no repercussions to pushing off regular cleanings.

Once a change is planned and scheduled in your head, it’s fine to wait until the last possible second - when the root canal is really twinging - to launch the steps outlined here. The change will be just as successful and painless as getting ahead of it first. Arguably, waiting is better so that all the pain can happen at once rather than having minimal pain spaced out over time. 

Think about it like throwing your audience a surprise party! The only difference is that instead of friends and cake, they get an abrupt and disorienting shift in their routine – who doesn’t like that? This is why daylight savings is so popular.

Now that you have every conceivable tool you will need, channel your inner (paraphrased) Gandhi and force the change you wish to see in the world. It just takes one email.

Happy April Fool’s from Siamo! If you’re looking for help to make your change stick, reach out to us.