CHANGE

Credible Highly Acceptable & Novel Growth Engine
Change Leverages, Accelerates & Inspires Minds
For
Charity, Humility, Accessible, Rejuvenate, Inclusive, Sincere, Mesmeric, Amity

     

The tectonic changes like AI, ChatGPT, 3D, Elon Musk’s brain chip ‘neuralink’, flying cars, human- less factories, human embryo incubators, colonizing of Mars, mining on the moon etc.  have turned the world upside down. It will continue to move upside down given the incredible speed of change. Chaos will become more intense.

Similar changes in the past had also created fears, anxieties and chaotic conditions. But, leaders with a clear vision initiated policies and techniques to turn change into benefits, expanding businesses and institutions and in turn raising the standards of living. 

Therefore, we cannot keep on watching the incoming changes with awe, fear and anxiety. All of us have to initiate changes and usher in newer products and services for higher prosperity, health and happiness. We have to initiate positive changes by acquiring visions of new possibilities and wonders through research and development. Such positive changes create charisma. Charismatic leaders revolutionize their own selves, their families, communities, nations and also the world. Such all-round changes set the trajectory for a brighter future and, in the process, immortalise the image of the change masters. Let us have a perspective review of the past to draw lessons and hopes for the future.

           Over-optimistic viewpoint, you think? Looks like a poetic dream or a leisurely sermon? 

Not at all. There are many shining examples. At the height of the British empire Mahatma Gandhi dreamt of a free India and achieved what Jawaharlal Nehru called a “tryst with the destiny”.

                                                                        

Charisma Creates Magical Spell

Or, take the example of U.S. President Kennedy, who stood before Congress on May 25, 1961, and made a prophetic proposal that the US "should commit itself to achieving the goal, before this decade is out, of landing a man on the Moon and returning him safely to Earth” .

Not everyone was impressed. A Gallup poll indicated that 58 percent of Americans were opposed to the idea. And that is a big deterrent for an elected office bearer. But Kennedy pursued his dream saying: "Change is the law of life. And those who look only to the past or present are certain to miss the future.” His passion and conviction won over peoples’ minds and, at 02:56 GMT on 21 July 1969, American astronaut Armstrong became the first person to walk on the Moon. As he stepped on the moon, he said, “That’s one small step for man, one giant leap for mankind.” Kennedy’s dream, opposed at first by 58% Americans, became a reality.

These are gigantic changes of epochal type. But, similar changes in various fields can make dramatic impact on the life and assets of individuals, communities and companies .

Champion Change for Cheerfulness & Cash-rich Chances

When Jamshedji Tata dreamt of starting a steel factory, it was considered a ‘crazy idea’ by the overseas experts who he met for consultations. But he pursued and succeeded and inspired many others to start industries. 

There are hundreds of individuals who created monumental wonders and became immortalized. Take for example Steeve Jobs, a drop-out, who dared to say: “The people who are crazy enough to think they can change the world are the ones who do.” And, he did change the world facing apparently unsurmountable barriers. He was fired from the company he founded, but started a new one and bounced back to take control of the original. It is still adding to the wonders of the world that are applauded even by competitors!

What is Change Makers’ Charismatic Magic?

However, change is not a cakewalk. It is an adventure full of opposition, hurdles, risks and threats. Many people are ‘somnambulist’ and prefer to confine themselves to ‘comfort zones’ and lead ‘eat, drink, sleep’ lives. As Richard Marcinko says, “Change hurts. It makes people insecure, confused and angry.” A charismatic change master can help pull them into the mainstream.

All above leaders also faced resistance from people to change initiatives. To overcome resistance, reasons for it must be understood and misapprehensions should be cleared.  The reasons could be mainly  (i) it is the new fad of the ‘boss’, (ii) fear of the unfamiliar and fear of making mistakes (iii) fear of incompetence due to failure to assimilate new skills (iv) hard work and long hours and (v) losing job.

The resistance can only be reduced/eliminated by developing all-round trust among all stakeholders. Most importantly, by driving home the benefits of the change to everyone. In short, the change has to be ‘sold’ effectively. Team spirit also has an important role. A change-over from ‘leader and followers’ to ‘leader of leaders’ concept can make this apparently onerous task easier.

How to Initiate and Accomplish Change?

1. First of all, regularly study/revise Maslow’s hierarchy of needs and honestly record the percentage of time and attention you pay to each type 

2. It is quite likely that the top need viz ‘self-actualisation’ gets no/least time. Plan to increase the time you spend on it.

3. During the time reserved for yourself try to find/develop your passion and pursue it.

4. Raise your inquisitiveness. Be a keen observer and try to interpret change and raise questions - more ‘whys’ than ‘whats’. The inventor of the LED bulb was strolling around a lake, when he observed that whenever a firefly in the marsh changed sides,  the radiance was amplified by sharp jagged scales on its anatomy. He asked himself ‘why’ and the LED bulb, a gift to humanity, was the result.

5. Study/revise De Bono’s theory of ‘Six Thinking Hats’: White (Facts& Figures), Red (Feelings& Emotions), Black (Risks & Cautions), Yellow (Opportunities & Values), Green (Creativity& New Ideas), Blue (Organisation Objectives).

6. Keep churning creative thoughts in the mind and record ideas using the Thinking Hats framework.  It is inevitable that ideas of change will emerge.

7. This devotion to change turns into creative habits. Just peruse Elon Musk’s life events and you will see epochal change almost every year.

8. If you are highly passionate about an idea all these activities go on in the sub-conscious mind all the time, but do not let tension build.

9. How to avoid tension? Take lessons from scientists and research scholars engaged in most serious, expensive and risky business. The highest hallmark of creativity and innovativeness is the 'Nobel Prize'. Listen to the voices of Nobel Laureates. According to Walter Issacson “throughout his life, Albert Einstein would retain the intuition and the awe of a child…..". He further reveals that Einstein wrote a letter to his friend saying that "people like you and me never grow old……….we never cease to stand like curious children before the great mystery into which we were born.” In short, just be natural and playful.

And finally, every change must actually yield new benefits to the organisation or public at large. To achieve that you need to raise your and your team’s POWER which spells:

Passion, Oracularity, Wisdom, Empathy , Responsiveness

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Wizards of the World!

Spread Your Creed of positive ‘Change’

Positive ‘Change’ Helps People to Bloom

When People Bloom/Shells and Silos in Doom

Business Booms/Company Zooms