How to Adapt to Changes in a Business Environment
Assess your current mindset about the change., Accept that change is inevitable in business., Reflect on how you’ve handled past changes., Take responsibility for your response to change., Adopt a positive attitude., Hold yourself accountable for...
Step-by-Step Guide
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Step 1: Assess your current mindset about the change.
At the beginning of this process, you will need to fully understand your current thoughts about the change.
You may be excited, hesitant, angry, fearful, anxious, or ambivalent to the change.
You may have multiple feelings or conflicting thoughts about the change and are unsure how you will react when the change is implemented.
Take a few hours to think about the change that is being instituted and write down your thoughts.For instance, management might be instituting a new policy about overtime pay.
Think about how this will affect you.
Do you work overtime frequently? Do you rely on the additional money or is it an incentive for you to work longer hours? Or, the new policy may not affect you at all.
Many people find it helpful to write their thoughts down as they reflect. -
Step 2: Accept that change is inevitable in business.
Change is bound to happen, especially if you work in a field that is quickly growing and adapting, like technology.
You may love how your business environment is at this moment, and a change may feel like a blow to your confidence.
However, you should frame the way you think about this change as an opportunity to better your career and to implement new procedures into your day to day work.There will be technologies and procedures that become outdated and are no longer relevant to the workplace.
You might have to learn how to use a new type of computer or software program because the old one has become outdated. , You have responded to changes in the past, even if they weren’t in your current workplace or career.
Think about what that change was, and how you reacted to it.
For example, you may have had to change offices with a coworker that you dislike.
Did you get upset about the change and complain to management? Or did you discuss the change with your manager and work out a solution? Thinking about how you’ve responded to change in the past will help you to anticipate how you will react to this current change.
It may be helpful to talk to someone who is close to you, like a spouse or best friend, and ask them about how you handle change.
This can provide valuable insights as you begin to approach this new challenge. , Whether you have reacted poorly or positively to change in the past, you will have to take responsibility for your response.
Understandably, some changes are much more difficult to cope with than others.
Some have profound impacts on the way that we live our lives, and they can present other unanticipated challenges.
However, you are able to control your emotional reaction to change.Think about whether there was a trigger for your response.
You could ask yourself whether you resisted a small change at work because you were stressed about your home life, or whether when you became angry about a new policy there was something else bothering you.
Understanding these triggers can help you take ownership of your responses to change. , Your attitude and mindset will frame how you respond to the change and whether you are able to adapt to it within your workplace.Think about how you have responded to changes in the past and realize that a positive attitude can improve your future responses.At this stage, the change may or may not have been implemented into the business environment.
If it has not already been implemented, this is your time to approach the change in a positive way.
If it has already become a new policy or mandate, your positive attitude will reflect itself in how you incorporate the change into your work habits.
For instance, your workplace may now require different sets of forms to be completed as a part of new regulations.
Rather than thinking of these forms as a waste of your time, or something that you should dread doing, reframe your thoughts.
Consider these new forms as a way to document your workplace productivity, and that they will allow management to effectively oversee business operations. , Whether the change has already gone into effect, or if it is still in the future, you can hold yourself responsible for how you will respond to it.It is helpful to think of this accountability in relation to time.
The change may be deep, and will significantly change your workplace, or it may be a smaller change that will have less of an impact.
Think about and write down what you want your response to be towards the change.
You should include how long it will take you to adapt fully to the change.
For example, a major policy change may take a few weeks to fully implement.
You should give yourself time to adapt to the policy, but hold yourself accountability to following through on your goal. -
Step 3: Reflect on how you’ve handled past changes.
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Step 4: Take responsibility for your response to change.
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Step 5: Adopt a positive attitude.
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Step 6: Hold yourself accountable for adapting to the new change.
Detailed Guide
At the beginning of this process, you will need to fully understand your current thoughts about the change.
You may be excited, hesitant, angry, fearful, anxious, or ambivalent to the change.
You may have multiple feelings or conflicting thoughts about the change and are unsure how you will react when the change is implemented.
Take a few hours to think about the change that is being instituted and write down your thoughts.For instance, management might be instituting a new policy about overtime pay.
Think about how this will affect you.
Do you work overtime frequently? Do you rely on the additional money or is it an incentive for you to work longer hours? Or, the new policy may not affect you at all.
Many people find it helpful to write their thoughts down as they reflect.
Change is bound to happen, especially if you work in a field that is quickly growing and adapting, like technology.
You may love how your business environment is at this moment, and a change may feel like a blow to your confidence.
However, you should frame the way you think about this change as an opportunity to better your career and to implement new procedures into your day to day work.There will be technologies and procedures that become outdated and are no longer relevant to the workplace.
You might have to learn how to use a new type of computer or software program because the old one has become outdated. , You have responded to changes in the past, even if they weren’t in your current workplace or career.
Think about what that change was, and how you reacted to it.
For example, you may have had to change offices with a coworker that you dislike.
Did you get upset about the change and complain to management? Or did you discuss the change with your manager and work out a solution? Thinking about how you’ve responded to change in the past will help you to anticipate how you will react to this current change.
It may be helpful to talk to someone who is close to you, like a spouse or best friend, and ask them about how you handle change.
This can provide valuable insights as you begin to approach this new challenge. , Whether you have reacted poorly or positively to change in the past, you will have to take responsibility for your response.
Understandably, some changes are much more difficult to cope with than others.
Some have profound impacts on the way that we live our lives, and they can present other unanticipated challenges.
However, you are able to control your emotional reaction to change.Think about whether there was a trigger for your response.
You could ask yourself whether you resisted a small change at work because you were stressed about your home life, or whether when you became angry about a new policy there was something else bothering you.
Understanding these triggers can help you take ownership of your responses to change. , Your attitude and mindset will frame how you respond to the change and whether you are able to adapt to it within your workplace.Think about how you have responded to changes in the past and realize that a positive attitude can improve your future responses.At this stage, the change may or may not have been implemented into the business environment.
If it has not already been implemented, this is your time to approach the change in a positive way.
If it has already become a new policy or mandate, your positive attitude will reflect itself in how you incorporate the change into your work habits.
For instance, your workplace may now require different sets of forms to be completed as a part of new regulations.
Rather than thinking of these forms as a waste of your time, or something that you should dread doing, reframe your thoughts.
Consider these new forms as a way to document your workplace productivity, and that they will allow management to effectively oversee business operations. , Whether the change has already gone into effect, or if it is still in the future, you can hold yourself responsible for how you will respond to it.It is helpful to think of this accountability in relation to time.
The change may be deep, and will significantly change your workplace, or it may be a smaller change that will have less of an impact.
Think about and write down what you want your response to be towards the change.
You should include how long it will take you to adapt fully to the change.
For example, a major policy change may take a few weeks to fully implement.
You should give yourself time to adapt to the policy, but hold yourself accountability to following through on your goal.
About the Author
Jose Lee
Specializes in breaking down complex crafts topics into simple steps.
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