Navigating change is one of the most challenging tasks you face as a leader. These days, change is constant. It’s no longer an event, but a way of being. You must continually adapt to an ever-evolving marketplace if you want to stay in – and preferably ahead of – the game.
But you can’t make change happen alone. It’s almost always a team sport. Effectively leading others through change requires mobilizing and motivating them to embrace change and approach it with curiosity, resilience, and a willingness to step into the unknown.
Far easier said than done. Most people tend to dislike change, particularly when it feels imposed or threatening. This aversion to change can be caused by any number of things:
To be successful at leading through change, you must help others move past their fears just enough to see that change could be an opportunity for something good to happen. This requires a mindset shift – learning to view change through the lens of possibility rather than peril. Once they’re open to potential, momentum will take over to help them move forward.
Sound impossible? Difficult, yes. Impossible, no. Let’s look at some mindset-shifting strategies that can help you inspire and empower others to face change with a sense of openness, adaptability, and a willingness to try.
I once had a paperweight on my desk that kept me motivated during a period of significant change in my company, a time when I was also being challenged to grow as a leader. It read: "If you can see it, you can be it. If you can dream it, you can become it."
This simple yet powerful reminder underscores the importance of a cognitive strategy that can help you as a leader create a more open mindset – envisioning the future you want. This is a good place to start with your team as you introduce the idea of change. Help them begin to see change not as just a disruption, but as a time of immense potential.
Lead others to see change not as just a disruption, but as a time of immense potential.
Some specific actions you can take:
Building on this, encourage everyone to consider what’s in it for them personally. Change often brings numerous benefits—if we choose to focus on what those wins could be. From the outset, as a leader you can highlight the opportunities for personal and professional growth that navigating a pivot can provide.
For example, you can emphasize how change can:
Ask them to make a list of the things they would like to get out of this change experience that would benefit them as individuals, both personally and professionally.
Another helpful mindset-shifting strategy as you lead through change is to remind your team of the wins they’ve had in the past, either collectively or as individuals, and how those things can help them going forward. Their determination, perseverance, hard work and problem-solving abilities have probably played a significant role in helping them get to where they are today.
These same strengths – along with the processes, systems and creative approaches they’ve developed (both formal and informal) over time – can guide them as they face new challenges. Whenever it makes sense to do so, reinforce the message that they likely already possess the fundamentals needed to succeed, and that they can build on their existing strengths to navigate through this new change.
Help them see they can build on their existing strengths to navigate through this new change.
Fear often holds us back during times of uncertainty, which is why this is an area you must address if you are to help others adopt a positive mindset about the change you are facing now.
I remember many times as I was building my company that I longed for things to feel easier—when I wouldn’t be so afraid of the unknown or unsure of how to proceed. But as Nelson Mandela wisely said, “Courage is not the absence of fear, but the triumph over it.” This perspective reminds us that it’s not about eliminating fear but about moving forward despite it.
I’ve found that focusing on courage, rather than confidence, can make all the difference to help people move forward during times of uncertainty. Although these concepts are often confused, they are fundamentally distinct.
Courage is about:
Confidence, on the other hand, is:
If we wait until we’re confident, we’ll miss the opportunity to grow, learn and achieve. We must take the first step with courage.
Practically speaking, you can share some of these courage concepts as you lead your company through change when you notice people are hesitant. If you have someone who is reluctant about taking on a new project, encourage them to view it as an experiment rather than a definitive commitment.
Instead of thinking “I need to be perfect,” help your team adopt a mindset of courage: “I’ll give it a try and know that I will learn from the experience.”
This reframing reduces pressure and allows them to focus on learning and growth. Instead of thinking, "I need to be perfect," they can adopt a mindset of courage knowing confidence will come later, saying "I'll give it a try and learn from the experience." And they will.
Going through change can be a slog. The big wins can seem a long way off. That’s why it’s crucial that you do what you can to help others maintain momentum during times of change.
One strategy to try is recognizing and praising effort, not just results. This reinforces the value of persistence, learning, and growth. When people feel their hard work is noticed and appreciated, they’re more likely to stay engaged and motivated, even when progress feels slow or challenging. Without encouragement along the way, individuals may lose confidence and give up before reaching the finish line.
When people feel their hard work is noticed and appreciated, they’re more likely to stay engaged, especially during times of change.
This approach also fosters what I like to think of as a journey mindset, where the focus shifts from simply reaching a specific destination or outcome related to change to slowing down long enough to appreciate the experiences, lessons, and growth that come from being on the journey of change.
By celebrating milestones and emphasizing the importance of effort, you’ll energize and encourage others to keep moving forward, fully present on the journey, with a grit not to quit.
Change is no longer an event, but a way of being. To effectively lead others through change, you must help them learn to view change through the lens of possibility rather than peril. Shifting mindset is one of the most important ways you can mobilize and motivate your team to go on the journey of change.
You can do this by trying the strategies we’ve talked through here by helping them to:
These strategies can help you and your team not just survive but thrive in times of change.
