Welcome back to the flow of The Change Leader Weekly. I’m excited to be back into it. Bring on 2022!
To Ponder: It’s Time To Fight The Overwhelm of Monotony
Thinking back to just a month ago, one of the most common themes across my clients was one of burnout. In a year of never-ending COVID restrictions - the line that divided work, home and leisure had all but disappeared. However, it wasn’t just the hybrid or WFH arrangements that created this burnout (after all, many organisations have been successfully WFH for years) - but it was the lack of uniqueness and variety. Not only were we working from the same place as we were eating and sleeping - but we were forced to socialise and adventure there too.
It was burnout from monotony.
The worry, of course, is that your staff may come back semi-refreshed after the end of year break - straight back into that same monotony this year. It’ll take 2-3 days max for those neural highways to get straight back into that monotonous groove, especially as Omicron continues to keep health authorities and communities on their toes.
So what can we do?
Well, in my view - life is short. It’s a new year. You’re filled with new energy.
So it’s time to be bold. You can’t be all things to all people - but you can provide variety. Here’s a few ideas:
🔬Allocate personal R&D time (think 3M or Google)
🎤Book fresh new speakers, authors and experts to inform and advise your teams
(I can help here)
✍️Hire a digital scribe for your weekly meeting (I’ve got a couple I can recommend)
↪️Inject new blood and team dynamics through staff rotations
✔️Send people on courses
📗Start a weekly book club
🎙️Create a team internal podcast, interviewing key people across your organisation
🏃Start a team at-home physical challenge
🏖️Run an innovation sandbox
The point here is to break that monotony and provide new input. We all need it, and most of us are missing it.
So, what will you do this month to prevent that 2021 monotony from sneaking back in?
To Action: What’s Exciting You About This Year?
All going to plan, 2022 will mark the beginning of the next phase of human understanding.
I’m so unbelievably excited.
The James Webb Space Telescope, a ground-breaking US$10B Telescope, launched 24th December last year. And just a few hours ago (at the time of writing) it finished its final high risk mechanical manoeuvre.
To give you a sense of how exciting this is - take a look at the chart below. The Hubble launched in 1990 and has provided decades of wonderful data and insight (with late 80s tech!). It’s hard to imagine how the JWT will shape human understanding over the next decade or three.
(image from https://www.quantamagazine.org/why-nasas-james-webb-space-telescope-matters-so-much-20211203/)
My excitement for the JWT has flowed into those around me, and into other areas of my life, including my business.
Excitement is contagious, and is crucial for any leader driving momentum.
So, what’s exciting YOU this year?
Are you making a big move? Rediscovering yoga? Learning to paint?
Share that excitement with others.
Your Weekly Anti-Platitude
In the spirit of experimentation, I’m going to trial a new newsletter section this month. I’m calling it your weekly anti-platitude. It’s a section designed to challenge me just as much as prompt you.
So here’s this week’s anti-platitude:
You can’t do everything you want to. Life is short and you are limited.
Those that are good at what they do, do so at the expense of something else.
So pick.
Brendon is on the Manage Smarter Podcast
I absolutely loved this this chat. It felt like being on a radio talk show. It was fast paced, and high energy.
In just 20 minutes we covered:
The Remit of a Change Leader
Creating Valuable Change
Fostering a Strong Change Core
Building and Protecting Change Momentum
Forging Fanatics and more.
Check out the video below, or the audio at Apple Podcasts | Spotify Podcasts
Are You Driving Change In A Hard Place In 2022?
Are you spending an untold amount of time and money spinning your wheels - yet creating no meaningful change momentum?
It’s not a surprise.
Between the layers upon layers of decision making, the three and a half committees that you need to convince, and the ever present challenge of finding the right person to enlist to your cause - creating change in the face of complexity is a tall order.
And yet - you have to.
Every successful business and every successful leader knows that change is the only constant.
But why does it have to be so hard?
This year, join the master of unforgettable experiences Leanne Hughes and myself for Beyond Bureaucracy: Generating Momentum in Complex Places.
Find our more and join the waitlist today at beyondbureaucracy.com to get access to (significantly discounted) early-bird pricing!
I’m looking forward to seeing you there.
It’s great to be back into it. 2022 is going to be a fantastic year.
As always, I’m just an email away.
Have an awesome week.
BB