Transformation can often be an unsettling experience at the individual as well as the corporate level. It is not unusual for people to experience feelings of stress and disorientation as the path ahead can seem uncertain. These emotions can become overwhelming for some people but it doesn’t have to be that way as ultimately, as an individual, you are more in control than you think you are about how to leverage the positives from the changing situation.

Changing the rules of the game might seem bleak on the face of it, as it is a departure from the known, but it can be used as a benefit. Once you get used to looking for the positives and viewing change as an opportunity, it can be easier to summon up the courage to take the decisions that will enable you to continue down your chosen path and fulfil your ambitions.

Let’s just say the company that you work for has been sold to a new owner, or your divisions has been carved out of a bigger company and sold; “What’s going to happen and what will it mean for me?” you might ask yourself. “What about my job and my colleagues; Will I still like my role?; What if I’m made to do things that I don’t want to do that I didn’t sign up for?” There’s lots of questions that tend to float around in the mind in such a situation, it’s easy to think about the adverse impacts of change. Thinking positively and differently can seem like a stretch after an unforeseen change in circumstance that will directly affect you as an employee has been thrust upon you…but it is possible and moreover, there can be significant personal upside.

To coin a well-known phrase (and apologies this will happen again in this article as there’s some useful ones!); “every cloud has a silver lining”. Although it might not seem like that in the first instance when you find out that the world around you will be changing and the level of familiarity you have with your day to day job and routine will be gone. However, if you are unsettled about change coming down the track, by attempting to do the hardest thing; which is to pause, breathe, assess, take stock, and plan what you’re going to do; things may not seem as bleak as they first appear.

Analyze the situation focussing on ‘me first’

Ask yourself the question: “How might this change benefit me?” And “How can I leverage this as an opportunity to realize my mid to long term ambitions?”. By analyzing the situation in which you find yourself and overlaying that with your immediate job preferences, aspirations for your career and life and indeed the purpose that drives you, you may well uncover a whole host of opportunities to leverage in any change situation, even if you do not know what they are yet. It can be incredibly useful to adopt the premise that you are actually more in control of the situation than you think you are on the face of it.

Plan how to make the best of it

Not to sound too mercenary, but a useful question to pose yourself is “how is this situation useful to me?” followed by “how am I going to ‘use’ it for my personal gain?”. If you are clear about what may be possible, it becomes clearer to look for the opportunity in unfamiliar situations that will help you achieve your aims. If you are true to yourself and use purpose as your guiding light, its possible to find a sense of calm when you make your own assessment of a changing situation and how you will play your own game focussing on what’s important to you.

Breathe deeply and adopt a change-oriented mindset

This can be challenging to do, especially as some people may not be as adept at adapting positively to change as others. It’s important to ignore the ‘mood hoovers’ and not to get sucked into the ‘oh well this or that bad thing could happen….as that will sap your energy and disrupt your positive mindset about how to use the change as a force for good, from which you hope to benefit. Its important to view change as a vehicle for you to achieve what you want. To quote the second well-known phrase of the day; ‘get comfortable with being uncomfortable’. Difficult though it may be, try to embrace turbulence and look for the opportunity, it might just work out well for you if you have done your thinking, have a personal plan and know where you are going.

Know your requirements, have a plan and execute on them

This is where the rubber meets the road. Be courageous by making decisions based upon fulfilling your personal requirements and sticking to your plan as you go along the change journey. It might seem like courage but really, it’s just sticking to your principles, following your purpose, and using your intuition. Try and get yourself into a flow state when working through changing circumstances, admittedly it can be really tough due to workload pressures and competing priorities but your choices will directly affect the outcome. If you feel like you are in control and are making your best effort to embrace change and look to take the positives FOR YOU, the situation will seem more like an opportunity with significant upsides rather than an uncomfortable imposition.

If you’d like to learn more about how to tackle transformation and transition with courage and positivity please get in touch.