“Ch-ch-ch-ch-Changes.” ~David Bowie
Everything changes. Even seemingly inert things change, if on a geologic timescale. The fact is nothing is permanent. This is especially true of living things. Living is practically synonymous with changing.
Just like you yourself, your business is a living thing. It is swimming in a sea of other living things too: customers and prospects, suppliers and vendors, employees and contractors, local, state, federal and international authorities, communities and cultures.
Fighting change is like fight the tides. It is both foolish and fruitless. Embrace change — or become irrelevant. Here are the three necessary levels of change you must adopt:
1) Change by Necessity
We start with changes imposed upon us by the outside world. A competitor launches a product. Technology improves. Laws change. Customer expectations demand more.
The most timid will change for nothing else. But change they must, because at this level it is change or die.
2) Change by Probability
Next are changes that arise by opportunity and serendipity. A new location becomes available. Labor markets loosen. Technology improvements bring lower costs. A competitor abandons a product or a market.
These are the changes made by the ambitious and the achievement-oriented. Just the fact of the change is not enough. Action must be taken and investment made to take advantage of it.
3) Change by Design
These are the changes born from your inner world. They go beyond change by mere probability to creating new possibilities. This is the realm of invention and market testing, of creativity and excellence.
“You’ve changed — thank goodness.” click to tweet
If things look like they looked last year at this time, get on the change train now. If you can see ways to get better results, take action. If it is within your reach to grab the brass ring, grab it. Time waits for no man, woman or child. Change is no enemy. Its intention is to keep you alive and thriving.
What have you changed? Tell us about it by commenting below.
Photo credit: Moritz Schulz
In my industry (technology) it is change or die a cruel, painful, ignominious death. I’m only exaggerating a little. I’d just like to take a breath every once in a while.
You may find that focusing on “Change by Design” will give you a bit more of a feeling of control over your own destiny rather than waiting for change to roll over you.