Designing Communication
Five-Stage Models for Change
Change is literally in our DNA. We are made for change, yet many of us still actively resist it, clinging to the familiar even when it's not what we want. We resist change because we feel circumstances are out of our control, we don't understand it, or we just fear the unknown. Often, we don't feel capable of change, thinking its price outweighs any potential reward.
Since change is programmed in us and the world is constantly moving, it makes good sense that we learn how to keep up. Facing change doesn't have to be hopeless or overwhelming. You don't need all the answers, tremendous energy, will, or courage-not all at once anyway. You do need a prescribed path. You need a plan.
INDIVIDUALS
I created the Designing Change model as a map for their change journeys so that they could chart their individual course for change and find a consistent cadence of progress toward their ultimate goals. In my experience, this kind of visual depiction can be a powerful ally to any major initiative, helping to provide the strategic plan that is essential to any type of success.
The model is the product of my desire to put change within both creative and scientific contexts. My intent is to describe the change process as a continuum of distinct, related, and interactive phases.
Broadly described, the Designing Change model takes the person undergoing change from realizing change is needed or happening, through processing and planning, and to the desired end state, or "new normal," via five distinct and related stages.
In addition to serving as a practical guide, the Designing Change model seeks to further an understanding of change theory-that is, the best ways to affect change within an organization, a person, or any human system.
ORGANIZATIONS
Like individuals, organizations change constantly. Mergers, acquisitions, new bosses, product innovations, scandals... all of these require deliberate management. Leaders must understand and guide their teams, using the science and art of the Designing Change model.
