Move Your Own Cheese

Dealing with change

The classic business book Who Moved My Cheese? is a fable that depicts how different people deal with change. If you’ve not yet read it, I highly recommend it.

Most people don’t like to change. But it’s much better to change on your own terms and on your own timeline than to have change forced upon you. No one likes to have to play catch-up in a rush.

Take a look around you and think about what changes might be coming in the next few weeks, months, and years. Is your software up-to-date? Is your office space set up to accommodate everyone you want working in-person over the winter months? Are any senior staff members getting close to retirement age, so you’ll need to figure out who will be filing their shoes? Are changes in the works for your primary markets? Are there new opportunities coming—new geographic markets, new revenue streams, new potential clients—you might consider pursuing?

Consider what steps you can take when things are not in crisis/catch-up mode. It’s easier, more cost-effective, and less stress-inducing to make organized, step-by-step changes when things are running smoothly.

Not everything can be anticipated, but if we can take care of the things we know are coming in advance, we’ll have more bandwidth available to deal with the surprises life throws at us.

(Photo by Damir Spanic on Unsplash)