Hello all! In last week’s post I kicked off a new series called What does improv have to do with change management? In this series, I’m sharing some of the lessons I’ve learned so far from improv class that have direct application to my work as a change management practitioner. This week’s lesson is….

Give a sh*t, be emotionally invested, and care about the person(s) you’re working with

My improv class instructor has talked about there not being hard and fast rules, methods, or techniques around how to “do” improv successfully, except for this one. He often talks about being invested as being the foundation for a successful improv scene. The more I reflect on it, I think all the lessons I’m learning stem from this one.

This lesson comes down to caring about the people you’re working with and investing emotionally (not just intellectually or technically/deliverable oriented). The instructor regularly reminds us that the audience can tell if we’re not connected to each other and the scene we’re building together, if we’re more focused on the techniques of improv and how to “do it right”, etc. That approach doesn’t make for an enjoyable experience for anyone.

This lesson comes down to caring about the people you’re working with and investing emotionally (not just intellectually or technically/deliverable oriented).

It’s not a big leap to see how this lesson applies to change management work. Change initiatives can be completed by sticking to the traditional processes, tools, techniques, and templates. I might even argue that this is how most change work is done Having your north star be getting all your assessments done so you can plan and execute a strategy to get people to move from current state to future state as quickly as possible with as little resistance as possible impacts what actions you take and how you take them. This approach doesn’t make for an enjoyable experience for anyone and often leads to less successful change initiatives.

Having your north star be seeing the people you’re working with as human beings and genuinely caring about and being invested with them will have a significant impact on how you go about whatever actions you take. You will most likely do many of the same things, but because you give a sh*t, are emotionally invested, and care about people, you will do them in a very different way. This approach makes for a more enjoyable experience for anyone and often leads to more successful change initiatives.

Closing thoughts

I want to hear from you! Have you experienced both north star approaches I mentioned? Have you seen each approach make a difference in how people felt throughout the project and/or project results?

Please post your thoughts and comments below. Let’s help each other become the best change management practitioners and enthusiasts we can be!

Thank you for reading. Until next time, take care and keep up the good work!

Mike