Embracing Change in the Digital Age – Part 2

Cheryl Cran’s latest book, “The Art of Change Leadership,” inspires how to positively transform the world through continuous self-metamorphosis, while guiding those in your sphere of influence to evolve, at the individual and organizational level. Her secret is to sustain energetic excitement, spawning new opportunity from any challenge.

Cran maps timeless understanding of change to fresh applicability in our world of social media, cloud computing and the sharing economy.

Here are some highlights from her sets of “6”.

6 STAGES OF THE CHANGE evolution:

CHANGE: triggers shock, fear, reflex reaction
PAST: cling to past for solace, protection; offers insights to help move forward
RESISTANCE: fear of failure/loss; reluctance to shift norms/routines
DISCOVER: accept the inevitable and seek opportunities to move forward; shift to positive energy
INTEGRATE: creativity and higher energy level
FUTURE: maximum optimism, inspiration.

Right now, I am at the DISCOVER stage of reinventing my career. After overcoming the pain and fear of major surgery and being displaced by outsourcing, I have left the security of the past behind, embracing the excitement and challenge of new possibilities.

6 characteristics of CHANGE that drive SUSTAINABLE TRANSFORMATION: via continuous reorganization:

treat disruption and challenges as opportunities
welcome complaints and problems as blessings
use creative solutions as re-organizational tools
see conflict as opportunity to better organize & generate fresh solutions
ask questions about the bigger picture
add value continuously at all levels across the organization.

For me, transforming myself from the corporate world to becoming a consultant is a tremendous mind shift. Every day I strive to add value at the more global level by providing free content. This is achieved by continuous learning and adaptation, as an individual.

6 aspects of COMBINING TECHNOLOGY WITH PEOPLE to lead CHANGE:

Assess YOUR current level of technological adaptability: how can you increase YOUR technology skills?
Who can you learn from?
Regular training on social media tools & techniques?
Open mind to bring your own device (BYOD) and multitasking on multiple devices?
Do you have a plan to optimize usage across your organization re social media?
Do you have as a goal to integrate your people skills with your technology skills to maximize business transformation?

Over the past while I have become an active Twitter user, sending content-related tweets as part of my routine.

I am creating blog articles and am planning a social media marketing campaign for my husband’s business. Most exciting is having teamed up with a Generation Y entrepreneur, as my mentor (Thank you Bonnie Chan)!

Cran describes the significance of energy states:

Moving from a lower to higher energy state is what makes transformational progress possible.
Energy poor = a challenge; a setback resulting in survival mode
Energy neutral = maintain status quo, humming along, good enough for a while
Energy rich = ongoing success, constant attention to add value, optimism, creativity, innovation, world centric focus, future thinking

As do Waller and Raskino, in ” Digital to the Core,” Cran’s message is to embrace disruption as the mother of opportunity.

How can YOU attain an energy rich state?

Summarizing Cran’s 6 ways to attain energy rich state in your organization, optimizing education and training, while continuously revising processes, policies and procedures: