On January 11, 2011 (1-11-11) a date that is visually interesting, not to mention that it is also a lucky day according to numerology, I will be conducting my first motivational seminar for the year. I will be speaking in the annual convention of sales agents who belong to a real estate conglomerate that is undergoing a major overhaul.
Recently, sixty percent of the ownership of the company was acquired by the maverick businessman and property magnate Andrew Tan of Megaworld through fresh capital infusion. With a new management coming in and a looming re-organization along the way, everyone in the company is apprehensive about the impending radical and big changes that will happen in the soonest possible time.
Even before the above acquisition took place, the unexpected wave of change already took a toll on the whole of real estate industry with the implementation of the RESA Law, a new legislation that took effect last year intended to regulate the practice of real estate service in the Philippines. As they move from one transition to another, it makes things difficult for the people who are affected to deal with change every time it hits them the least they expect it.
Change unfolds in lightning speed. The need to deal with it has become inevitable. Those who refuse to embrace and resist it will surely be left behind. If you are an employee, you might end up losing your job one day if you cannot cope with the present and future demands of your job. If you are in business, you will be outperformed by your competitor or just wake up one morning with your company no longer in your control. In other words, if you move slower than the pace change is happening, you will become obsolete. Or worse, you will be flushed out.
WHY DO PEOPLE RESIST CHANGE?
Comes January 21, I will be in Boracay to perform a similar role as resource speaker of the Commission of Human Rights (CHR) during its annual Directorate Conference. My mission: to convince and motivate their regional directors who are hardcore lawyers to go out of their comfort zone and become prime movers of change in support of a technology-based information system that the agency wants to fully implement. I have a feeling that I will be accused of libel or alarm and scandal because my audience might not like the things I will discuss during the seminar.
This is what will happen if you are confronted with change – you will start to feel uncomfortable. That is why the first challenge in dealing with change is not the change process itself but how you react to it. Resistance becomes a natural tendency among people who are required to adapt to change or implement a new system because they are trying to protect their comfort zone. Most people preserve their source of comfort and fight any situation that creates discomfort. Why? Because the most basic need of every human being is SURVIVAL! People do not want to change if everything around seems okay. In other words, as long as there is nothing that threatens their survival, they do not see the need for change.
HOW TO DRIVE CHANGE
The key to driving change that involves people is to “disturb their comfort zone.” They need to realize that while everything seems OK for now, their survival is already critical in the near future. The way to do it requires that we address their mindset at the subconscious level. We need to uncover the old paradigms they hold on and cling to as absolute truth. That makes unlearning as important as learning. As an old saying goes, “you cannot fill a glass of water when it’s already full.”
A new paradigm is required in dealing with change. Even if it involves technology, the most important component of change is still the human intervention. As catalysts of change, human beings need to understand that they have the power to effect change only if they are willing to change themselves. That is how real change can happen. Mahatma Gandhi said it well: “You need to be the change that you want to see in the world.”
In my seminars, I teach three essential human components required for a change process to succeed. First, emotion must be clear. Second, decision must be certain. And third, action must be compelling. I call this the 3 pillars of successful change. All these must work in harmony so that desired result is achieved.
BREAKTHROUGH IS POSSIBLE
Real breakthrough among individuals, teams and organizations can happen once the above conditions are satisfied. One would be ready to unleash the ultimate source of his personal power that leads to breakthrough results if all the barriers to change no longer exist.
This is also the secret of world-class achievers like our very own people’s champ, Congressman Manny Pacquiao. When Pacquiao decided to move up in weight and take his career to the next level, he needed to let go of his old style in order to overcome his weaknesses, learn new counter punching skills, develop stronger punching power and gain more speed. What took place in him was not a dramatic change but a transformational growth. Far greater than what he has accomplished is what he has become. That is what I call -- ULTIMATE BREAKTHROUGH!
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