Lessons from loafers

It’s March break, and what better way to celebrate than a visit from our teenaged niece and nephew? After two days, I’m thinking maybe a big fat glass of red wine, but I’ll refrain (for now). Regular readers know that I’ll look for a change management lesson anywhere, and there’s one here.

Steve spent the last two days wracking his brain trying to figure out what to do with our house guests (they belong to his sister, so hey, I defer to him). In the end, the most comfortable thing for him to do was to let them do what they wanted, which inevitably led to video streaming and lots of sleeping. There’s a good chance, though, they wanted him to get them off their PSP butts and show them something pretty cool, like the Distillery District or West Queen West. It could have been fun, no? But he didn’t bite. After all, it’s their vacation, maybe they just want to sleep. Or maybe, they don’t…

Here’s the nut: sometimes what we think will be more uncomfortable for our people is exactly what they need…as Sheryl Crow says, a change will do ya good. So, maybe our inability to get traction on change is less about them, and more about us, and our willingness to take the initiative. I know it’s a drag, but sometimes, the leader has to lead…

~Mel