Change from the Inside Out

1. Embrace Constant Change: The New Normal

Today we all wear computers on our wrists or keep them in our pockets and purses, computers hundreds of times faster and more powerful than their predecessors of a few decades ago.

Accelerating pace. The world has shifted from a relatively stable environment, where major changes unfolded gradually over decades, to one of unimaginable, unrelenting, and ever-increasing change. Unlike the mid-20th century, where innovations like color TV had a decade to integrate, today's technological and cultural shifts occur continuously, demanding constant adaptation. This rapid evolution means that what was once considered "modern" quickly becomes obsolete.

Organizational impact. This acceleration profoundly affects organizations, leading to near-continuous transformations in roles, processes, and business models. Industries like manufacturing have seen massive declines, while knowledge-intensive and service sectors have doubled, forcing companies to either dramatically transform or face obsolescence. Employees now experience constant shifts in reporting structures, job responsibilities, and company missions, making the workplace feel like a state of near-continuous flux.

Shift in perspective. Despite this reality, humans are deeply wired for homeostasis—a preference for stability and sameness, historically crucial for survival. This innate bias makes continuous change exhausting and anxiety-inducing. To survive and thrive today, individuals and organizations must rewire themselves to accept, and even embrace, ongoing change as the new normal, rather than viewing it as a temporary disruption to be endured.

2. Change Starts from Within: The Mindset Shift

Behavior change follows mindset change.

Inside-out transformation. For any real change to occur, whether in an individual or an entire organization, it must happen from the inside out. This means that consistent shifts in behavior are predicated on a fundamental shift in thinking or mindset. Without this internal reorientation, attempts at external behavioral change are often temporary or superficial, lacking genuine buy-in and sustainability.

The Change Arc. This core process of human adaptation is captured by the "Change Arc," a simple yet powerful model: Proposed Change → Mindset Shift → New Behaviors → Change Occurs. Each stage is sequential, emphasizing that understanding and internalizing the "why" and "what" of a change (Proposed Change) is foundational to altering one's beliefs (Mindset Shift), which then enables new actions (New Behaviors) leading to the desired outcome (Change Occurs).

Foundational clarity. To catalyze this internal shift, individuals must first clearly understand and connect with the proposed change. This involves articulating precisely what the change entails, why it is necessary, and what the future state will look like once the change has been made. If this initial description is unclear or uncompelling, it significantly hinders the ability to move past resistance and embrace new possibilities.

3. Master Your Self-Talk to Drive Change

Controlling our reaction to circumstances begins by managing the way we talk to ourselves about those circumstances.

The most vital skill. Managing one's self-talk is the simplest and most effective way to shift mindset, acting as the invisible key that unlocks new behaviors. This internal monologue, often unconscious and negative, can reinforce beliefs that change is difficult, costly, or weird, thereby impeding progress. Consciously altering this inner dialogue is paramount for becoming change-capable and change-positive.

Four-step process. To effectively manage self-talk, follow a learnable four-step process:

• Recognize: Become aware of the negative or unhelpful internal commentary.
• Record: Write down the self-talk to create objective distance and question its validity.
• Revise: Create believable, more accurate, and hopeful alternative self-talk that promotes a useful response.
• Repeat: Consistently substitute the revised self-talk whenever the unsupportive monologue arises, building a new habit of thought.

Shifting beliefs. This practice helps transition beliefs from "difficult, costly, weird" to "easy/doable, rewarding, normal." By reframing internal narratives, individuals can move from dismissal and avoidance to curiosity and acceptance, paving the way for new behaviors. This courageous act of choosing to believe in the possibility of beneficial change is a powerful catalyst for personal and organizational transformation.

4. Leaders Must Model and Guide Change

If you’re going to follow someone across that bridge to the new and unknown world of the future, we need to trust that person as a fully followable leader.

Catalyst for change. Leaders are the primary catalysts for successful change, and their effectiveness hinges on their own willingness to embrace the change arc. They must first personally understand the proposed change, make the necessary mindset shift, and then actively demonstrate the new behaviors required. Only after putting on their "own oxygen mask" can they effectively guide others through their individual transitions.

Followable Leader Attributes. In times of change, people seek leaders who embody six key attributes:

• Farsighted: Envisioning and articulating a compelling, inclusive future.
• Passionate: Deeply committed to what's important, inspiring others.
• Courageous: Demonstrating personal bravery, making tough calls, and having followers' backs.
• Wise: Listening deeply, making objective decisions for the greater good.
• Generous: Sharing power, praising, and providing resources and support.
• Trustworthy: Being honest, keeping promises, and demonstrating competence.

Modeling new behaviors. Leaders must not only articulate the vision but also consistently model the new behaviors they expect from their teams. If leaders fail to walk the talk, they quickly lose credibility, making it nearly impossible to gain employee buy-in and commitment. Their authentic engagement and personal courage in facing change inspire similar courage and commitment in their followers, making the journey across the "organizational bridge" possible.

5. The Five-Step Model for Organizational Transformation

Unless an organization’s leaders, its members, and the organization itself are all aligned around and working toward a proposed change, the change will almost certainly fail.

Holistic approach. Successful organizational change requires alignment across three critical levels: leaders, individuals, and the organization itself (systems, structures, and culture). The five-step change model provides a comprehensive framework to ensure this alignment, guiding a group or entire enterprise from its current state to a desired future. It acknowledges that change is a complex, multi-faceted endeavor that cannot succeed if any of these elements are neglected.

Integrated process. The model builds directly from the individual "Change Arc," recognizing that different people within the organization will be at varying stages of their personal transition at any given time. As the organization progresses through the five steps, more people are brought into the process, each beginning their own journey through proposed change, mindset shift, new behaviors, and ultimately, change occurring. This iterative approach prevents leaders from making unrealistic assumptions about immediate buy-in.

The five steps:

1. Clarify the Change and Why It’s Needed: Define the "what" and "why" of the change.
2. Envision the Future State: Paint a clear picture of what success looks like post-change.
3. Build the Change: Form the change team, identify stakeholders, and create the detailed plan.
4. Lead the Transition: Support people through their personal change arcs as the plan is executed.
5. Keep the Change Going: Sustain the change and build long-term change-capability.

6. Plan Change with Feasibility, Impact, and Timeliness (FIT)

These three criteria—feasibility, impact, and timeliness (or FIT)—are extraordinarily helpful when deciding what to change.

Strategic clarity. Before embarking on any change, leaders must clearly define the challenge, assess the current state, and identify the specific changes needed. This involves asking "What isn't working?" and framing it as a "How can we...?" question, then objectively evaluating current strengths and weaknesses relative to that challenge. This foundational work ensures that efforts are directed towards the most critical problems.

The FIT sorting screen. To prioritize and select the most effective changes, the FIT criteria are invaluable:

• Feasibility: Is the change doable given available resources, skills, and bandwidth?
• Impact: Will the change yield significant positive results, moving the organization furthest towards its goals with minimal effort?
• Timeliness: Can the change be implemented now without requiring other prerequisite changes, and does it leverage current opportunities?
  Applying FIT helps avoid paralysis by analysis and ensures that chosen changes are practical and effective.

Foundational planning tools. Once changes are identified using FIT, the Project Charter serves as a single-page agreement capturing the problem, goals, scope, target benefits, and resources. This document ensures alignment among leaders and provides a consistent message for stakeholders. The Work Breakdown Structure (WBS) then systematically unpacks the project into manageable levels: Project, Workstreams/Phases, Deliverables, and Tasks, assigning clear ownership to ensure accountability and detailed planning.

7. Support People Through Endings and Beginnings

In order to move through what he called "transition" (and what we call the change arc), people would first have to let go of all the important things that would no longer be true for them after the change.

Transition vs. Change. While "change" refers to the external event or situation, "transition" is the internal, psychological process individuals undergo to come to terms with that change. This process involves three stages: "endings" (letting go of the old), a "neutral zone" (a period of adjustment), and "beginnings" (embracing the new). Understanding this distinction is crucial for effective change leadership.

Clarifying endings and beginnings. For each group affected by a change, it's vital to identify what specific aspects of their work life, relationships, identity, or expectations will be ending, and what new ones will be beginning. This goes beyond tangible job responsibilities to include less obvious, yet often more powerful, emotional impacts. For example, an ending might be "feeling confident in our old skills," while a beginning could be "new relationships with different teams."

Involving affected groups. Leaders should involve the impacted individuals in clarifying these endings and beginnings. This collaborative approach not only provides invaluable insights for planning the transition but also demonstrates empathy and inclusivity. By acknowledging their losses and helping them articulate their gains, leaders can support people through the emotional challenges of change, fostering a mindset shift towards seeing the new reality as potentially easier, more rewarding, and eventually, normal.

8. Leverage Change Levers to Accelerate Transition

We’ve identified four approaches you can use as a leader in supporting people through their change arc. We call these approaches change levers, because they work to accelerate that movement and to make change easier and less painful for people.

Force multipliers for transition. To accelerate people's movement through their change arc, leaders can strategically employ four "change levers." These levers act as force multipliers, making the transition smoother and less painful by addressing common human resistances to change. They are essential for moving from theoretical planning to practical, human-centered implementation.

The four change levers:

• Increase understanding: Provide clear context, rationale, and vision for the change, using information, stories, and experiences to answer "what does it mean to me?"
• Clarify and reinforce priorities: Reassure people about what will remain constant and clearly communicate any new or shifted priorities, soothing the innate desire for stability.
• Give control: Involve people in decisions about how and when the change will happen, reducing feelings of victimization and fostering ownership.
• Give support: Listen empathetically to concerns, acknowledge emotions, and provide necessary tools, resources, and skill development to navigate the new reality.

Integrated transition planning. The transition plan, built using these levers, must be seamlessly integrated into the overall change plan. This ensures that communication, training, and support efforts are synchronized with the practical implementation of the change. Assigning clear owners for transition deliverables and focusing on two-way communication and impediment removal are critical for successful execution, preventing the common pitfall of neglecting the human side of change.

9. Align Organizational Elements for Lasting Change

If there are overall unaddressed organizational impediments—ways in which your systems, structures, or culture are antichange in a larger sense—this change and future changes may be doomed to failure, despite your good planning and preparation.

The organizational bridge. The organization itself, comprising its systems, structures, and culture, acts as a "bridge" that people must traverse to reach a changed future. If this bridge is inherently "antichange"—meaning its elements are complicated, disconnected, insufficient, or unsupportive—even well-planned changes can sputter or fail. Sustaining change requires actively making these organizational elements more change-capable.

Identifying impediments. Systems (how work gets done), structures (how things are organized, e.g., org charts), and culture (patterns of accepted behavior and underlying values) can all impede change. Problems arise when systems are overly complicated or disconnected, structures are confusing or siloed, or the culture implicitly values stability or tradition over adaptation. Recognizing these deep-seated issues is the first step towards addressing them.

Making the organization change-capable. To ensure long-term success and prepare for future changes, leaders must proactively address these organizational impediments. This involves:

• Systemic improvements: Streamlining processes, integrating disconnected systems, and investing in sufficient technological infrastructure.
• Structural clarity: Simplifying reporting lines, clarifying roles, and fostering cross-functional collaboration.
• Cultural shifts: Identifying implicit values that resist change (e.g., "caution" or "tradition") and intentionally reframing them to be more change-supportive (e.g., "science-based" or "evolution"), then reinforcing new behaviors through leadership attention, resource allocation, and reward systems.

Last updated: August 11, 2025