Change can easily create a culture of dependence. Maybe you feel uncertain, or confused, so you decide to sit back until you get a new set of directions. You’ve got questions that need answers. You want help. It could be that you’re disgusted. Let’s say you don’t buy into the changes, so you figure you’ll hold off until somebody comes around and tells you specifically what to do. After all, “doing nothing” is one of the popular ways people fight changes they don‘t like.
Of course, it might be that the culture hasn’t required you to think for yourself. Maybe you assume you’re supposedto wait for guidance, to always turn to someone else for guidance, so you’ve just naturally come to depend on others for your marching orders.
Those days are over. The shift toward a culture of initiative and independence means you must figure out for yourself what the you need. Then move on it.
Self-directed behavior is essential in today’s world of accelerating change. For one thing, businesses, organizations, agencies are learning to run lean, and that means every person must become more self-sufficient. You can‘t count on having someone to come around and hand-feed you instructions on a regular basis.
So put yourself in charge of problem-solving. You don‘t have to have all the answers. Nobody does. Just show some initiative. Come up with your own answers, and there‘s a good chance they‘ll be better than you could get from anybody else.
“If you come to a fork in the road, take it.”
Attributed to Yogi Berra
Adapted from Price Pritchett, PH.D. Culture Shift: The Employee Handbook for Change Corporate Culture.
