Why recovery is essential to your change plans

I have another question for you.

How do we prepare ourselves for change?

I’ve thought about this often throughout my career, and I’m thinking about it now as I navigate the personal changes I shared with you two weeks ago.

This is what’s clear to me: You need times when you’re not changing to recover.

For change to be sustainable (rather than a wallop to your life or company), it cannot be constant forward momentum.

Most of us default to think about change as a linear process. You start here, and you end there, and then you’re done.

It’s much more accurate to think of change as cyclical.

Take my big project to downsize and move. Sure, it might seem like there’s one starting point (the decision to put the house on the market) and one endpoint, when we move.

But within that are countless cycles of change: downsizing and packing each section, each room. Bittersweet emotional cycles of excitement and sadness. And when we move, those cycles will continue! We’ll likely find more to let go as we unpack and settle into our new space.

This is true of every change. From the outside, it might look like it starts and stops. But on the inside, we’re going through it in cycles.

Going through the cycles of change takes energy! That’s why it’s so important to prepare for change by building in recovery time. The organizations and leaders that I’ve worked with that navigate change most successfully, always include rest and recovery time in their planning.

You have to plan your recoveries as much as you plan your work. The Transformation Management Office (TMO) can help.

Before I wrap up, I want to thank you for the lovely notes you sent after my last Dispatch! It was heartening to hear about how you’ve navigated big changes, personally and professionally. I’d love to hear more: what’s your favorite way to build in recovery during cycles of change?

My Latest:

• If you could choose between perfection and excellence, which would you pick? 🧐That’s what we discussed in yesterday’s livestream!

• Audacious goals are better than achievable ones. This is why.

• “Scenario-planning” is my number one tip for decision-making in complexity. On Tuesday I’ll be live sharing how you can scenario-plan for your organization. Join me on LinkedIn at 9 am PT / 12 pm ET!

Good Things:

• Reads: Seismic Leadership by Michelle Johnston. Michelle reveals why new leaders’ power lies in their ability to connect — so of course, I am all over this book! It’s wonderful and available for preorder now!

• Referrals:

• Resource: I’m obsessed with Things, the task management software. I love its simple design and how easy it is to rearrange and organize tasks personally and professionally.