In 2019, I started writing about how people deal with change in organisations as part of the launch of a new website for my business, Twist Consultants. As we all now know, this was the last year of work as we’d come to know it before the world was upturned by a pandemic.
Since then, I’ve published over 150 posts and several newsletters. Every post has been designed with leaders and managers in mind and specifically to help them to put people first in any type of organisational change – including them. I’ve covered a host of topics including communications, leadership, climate change and sustainability, wellbeing and resilience, hope and neuroscience.
Four years later - and with much of that period dominated by a pandemic and its aftermath - here are my four lessons from the journey so far, that I hope will help you too…
Consistency wins
I’ve tried to publish posts weekly, creating a drumbeat to deliver something valuable for those people who have opened up their inbox to me. And maintaining consistency is something I talk about with clients, especially in times of change and uncertainty. Our brains like routine and habit – they’re predictability machines – so setting expectations and delivering on them for teams can make a big and very positive difference.
Connection, relationships and people
Of course, I had no idea that just over a year after launching the Twist blog and newsletter, connection would become so important to us all as we went into lockdown. Our focus went to each other, building, checking and maintaining our relationships – remember online quizzing and Zoom fatigue?
As we are still very much in choppy seas with so much shifting at the same time, this focus on connection is still just as important. When we connect with others, we feel valued and a sense of belonging – we matter. The range of emotions we can feel with others can release feel-good hormones like dopamine. With that in mind, think about how you can make more time for intentional connection for yourself and your teams.
Changing mindsets
To maintain the momentum of writing and sharing, I had to shift my thinking about the process. I’ve managed to maintain my commitment to blogging over the last four years because I’m not doing it for me – my mindset is that I’m doing it for other people, to share ideas that might help or shape some different thinking.
This sense of purpose is so important to support motivation – not just for me but your employees too. If people know why they’re doing something, then they’re more likely to be engaged in it.
Feedback = learning
Every time I share ideas, I ask for feedback – for folk to share thoughts and reactions to what they’ve read. What has this prompted you to think about? Is something completely off the mark? What else would you like to know about? What would you like to share? What’s on your mind? All hugely helpful.
Making sure we create opportunities and spaces for people to share their feedback in the right way is key if we want to find out what’s working – or what’s not.
These are my four standout learnings so far. But my biggest lesson from sharing my writing since 2019 hasn’t really been about the process at all. it’s been about purpose, motivation and connection. Thinking carefully about why we do things, how to create relationships and learning from what works and what doesn’t.
I hope there are things in my four years’ worth of lessons that you find useful too. Let me know what’s helpful to you.
Finally, can I ask you one question – what’s the biggest challenge you’re facing right now in your team or organisation? Just hit reply and drop me a note.
And a big thank you so much for being on the journey with me so far.
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