Chapter 9

Don’t Let Your Guard Down— Prepare for the Next Change

In This Chapter

• playing the “what if” prediction game
• the “what if” game rules
• using change capsules to deal with change
• the “what if” scenario exercise
• change capsule exercise

Just as a business develops both short- and long-term forecasts concerning future markets and customers, you need to set goals for your career. Your career forecast should be based on the same type of data as business forecasts: recent research, interviews, opinions, and other credible sources of information that can lead you to insights into the future. These forecasts will help prepare you for the changes you’ll meet in the upcoming years. Although forecasting may be little more than an educated guess, it does represent your best hope of understanding what is to come.

As noted in chapter 6, change enters our lives like a hurricane and those who survive it are often the most prepared. That’s what disaster preparedness is all about. Asking the hard “what if ” questions. Companies that lead markets and trends are also skilled at asking difficult “what if ” questions about future market conditions or customer needs. If you could prepare by playing a game, the rules would be like the following.

The “What If” Game

1. Players must watch their Organizational Change Radar Screen very closely for changes.
2. When they see a blip on this screen, players should begin asking a series of “what if ” questions. Players are not restricted to asking “what if ” questions only about blips on the radar screen, however. Anything that might represent a change in the future is allowed.
3. “What if ” questions are to be shared with as many players as possible to get their view about possible outcomes.
4. The “what if ” questions differ according to the situation.
5. There are no right or wrong answers to “what if ” questions at the time they are asked. Only the future will determine the accuracy of the answers.
6. There are no penalties for players who are wrong. Instead, they should be rewarded for looking ahead and trying to be better prepared for the future.
7. There is no such thing as a stupid “what if ” question. The only bad questions are those that were never asked—so then everyone is caught off guard when reality arrives.

A word of caution for players: Don’t become fixated on too many “what ifs.” Remember, analysis can turn into paralysis. Having all the data in front of you is fine, but at some point you need to move forward despite all the signs that are telling you to hesitate. Sometimes the best decisions are the ones based on our emotions rather than logic. (See the exercise at the end of the chapter for a chance to actually play the “What If ” game.)

Change Flexibility

Your change flexibility is your ability to adapt to any kind of change. It is a combination of your perceptions, image, skills, abilities, and above all, attitude toward change. The more flexible about change you become, the less you need to worry about when it arrives. You can even welcome it into your life. The more open you are about new ways of doing things, the more you begin to exercise change flexibility.

Of course, it would be great if we could forecast the future—we would never be surprised and would never have to leave our comfort zones. Comfort zones are the familiar patterns that make us feel secure when everything around us seems to be unsteady. Change definitely takes you out of your comfort zone. But a set of forecasting tools called change capsules can lessen the impact of being yanked out of your comfort zone by change.

Change Capsules

Imagine time capsules packed with information about current lifestyles and culture so that future generations can learn how people lived during our present time. Change capsules are similar, but they are designed to help you conceptualize what change may bring in the future. They can be used to help people look more strategically at their business and assess where market trends may be headed. Change capsules can also help us understand how change may affect our careers and ultimately our lives.

Developing your own change capsule is easy. In fact, everything you need is provided on the following pages in the exercises section of the chapter. All you have to do is make copies of the change capsules to use in the future and supply an envelope for each one. To begin creating your change capsules, you will need to make certain decisions. You’ll need to decide when you want to open your change capsule. It all depends on the event you’re predicting. Some events may be short-term while others are long-term. In either case, you need to specify when your change capsule should be opened again.

Change capsules can become part of your strategic planning and forecasting every year. Make sure you have fun with your change capsules—turn them into an exercise at work. You might even give awards for the most accurate, the most outrageous, or the most innovative capsule. See the change capsule exercise at the end of this chapter for more detailed instructions to begin the process.

Tools, Techniques, and Exercises

Find out how you do with the “what ifs” in your work life. Also, make a change capsule for predictions.

Playing the “What If” Game

The “what if ” game is actually very easy to play; all you have to do is ask a series of “what if ” questions about possible changes that might occur and record what you would do if a particular change happened.

Imagine there is a possibility of your company merging or being bought by another one (as was frequently the case for Ken Jameson in chapter 9). Here are some example questions that might come up.

What if...

• this merger does come through?
• this causes changes in the organization?
• these organizational changes involve your department?
• these changes directly affect your job?
• these changes affect your career?
• this has an effect on your life?

Your Own “What If” Scenario Exercise

Imagine a possible change scenario that will affect your life. The change can be moderate, such as a slightly different reporting structure, or a full-scale reorganization. Then create your own “what if ” questions below. Also, jot down your answers to how you would address those questions.

What if…

Change Capsule Exercise

Change capsules are designed to help you look ahead. Although they may only be best guesses at the time, they can still offer valuable insights into the way things might change. Here are the basics of creating your own change capsules using the templates below:

• Each change capsule asks you to predict what you think the future will be on a variety of different topics.
• The first two change capsules can be used as part of a group exercise. Share those two capsules with others. The third change capsule, however, should be completed by each individual and should be kept private.
• You can design your own change capsules to predict other changes that could become an important part of your life.
• Each change capsule has a reveal date—when you should open the change capsule. This reveal date should be on the envelope containing your change capsule. You should put the capsule in a tickler file to remind you of the date to open it. The capsules should then be opened and evaluated for accuracy.
• Each change capsule should be viewed as a learning opportunity. Thinking about what the future might bring is educational. These capsules allow you to learn from history, too. As each change capsule is opened, you should reflect on what you learned during the change to help you make better predictions later.

Change Capsule #1

Reveal Date/Time:

(One year from the date you complete the change capsule.)

1. What major world events do you think will occur during the next year that will change the way your organization does business today?

Change Capsule #2

Reveal Date/Time:

(Six months from the date you complete the change capsule.)

1. What change events do you see coming for your organization during the next six months?
   
   
2. How do you think these changes will affect your department or work group and the way people perform their jobs?
   
   
3. How do you believe these changes will affect the way you perform your job?
   
   

Change Capsule #3 (Personal)

Reveal Date/Time:

(The timing is up to you.)

1. Based on everything we’ve discussed in this book, think about the possible changes you envision for yourself between today and the date you will look at this change capsule again.
   
   
2. What changes do you think will occur in your professional life during this period?
   
   
3. What changes do you think will occur in your personal life?
   
   
4. What goals would you like to reach during this period?
   
   
5. What will you do to help yourself achieve these goals? (To be completed after you open this change capsule.)
   
   
6. What were the results of your efforts to achieve the goals you established? Are you satisfied with these results?
   
   

What’s Next

This chapter prepared you to meet change inside your organization. The next chapter suggests ways to stay ahead of rapidly changing technology and new concepts of the workplace.