I’m an equestrian; my passion—horses. Sun going down, horses eating dinner, my riding coach, Jen, tells me a story. She just returned from teaching a riding clinic and one of her students shared that she was having trouble getting her horse to canter (a faster, bigger gate). To test whether the horse understood the cues to canter, Jen got on the horse and signaled the horse to canter (the horse cantered immediately). I asked Jen why the student was struggling to canter her horse. Jen responded, “fear.” I responded, “A lot of people are fearful, it comes with the territory. She can work through it.” Jen responded, “I can work with fear, but I can’t teach people that are so fearful that they don’t have the courage to take a leap. They won’t just let go and leap!”
This, of course, made me think of leading change and how hard it is to just let go and leap! I’m not talking baby steps—I’m talking a leap. For example, consider taking a leap with your executive sponsor of the change.
Explicitly outline what you think is needed in terms of actions and behaviors from your executive sponsor. This is NOT a list you’re going to hand over to your vice president (VP) with a “here’s what I need from you“ statement attached. This list is for you—to be clear in your mind what you as a critical thinker believe is necessary from your executive leader to effectively support the change. In addition, I know it’s scary to talk with your VP, however successful changes require you to have an effective sponsor. Muster up some courage and take a leap—talk with your executive sponsor! Consider statements like,
- “I’m sure you can appreciate why your leadership and sponsorship of this change initiative is the most important success factor. Our employees look to the folks at the top for guidance and priorities. I know you believe this change is the right change to make for our company. Can we talk about your role as the executive sponsor? May I ask what you think is the best approach in terms of ongoing actions from you to continually reinforce the importance of this change?”
Now, be quiet and listen. Let your VP work through what they think is best. If their thinking is the same as your thinking—bonus! If not, ask more questions. For example,
- “Do you think it would be effective to include a section in your weekly update about the importance of this change?”
- “How do you think we can tap into the hearts and minds of our people to motivate them to support this change?”
- “Do you think the mid-level managers support this change—so much so that they are sending the right messages and projecting the right attitude about this change?”
Don’t use phrases like, “Can I give you some feedback” or “May I suggest that you do X.” Phrases like those trigger the threat response in just about anybody. Ask questions.
Go forth, do good work, and take a leap!
