Friday, February 6, 2009

Managing Change & Being Flexible in Life


An article with the following quote as caption at Economic Times Ascent made me to think and write on an interesting topic, "Managing Change & Being Flexible in Life".
" The great thing about human beings is that they can change. If you can get up every day, stay optimistic, and believe the future is better than the past, those few things get you through a lot "
- Jeff Immelt, CEO, GE


Our days are filled with commitment towards profession, family, friends, social activities etc. So the point is we need to be very flexible and responsive to the changes that are happening in our day to day life.

Flexibility means being able to respond to change and deal with it. It's a trait any of us can learn and it's one that is critical to our success in managing any type of change. Yet being flexible isn't easy.We have to work at and practice flexibility daily. We have to choose daily to remain adaptable. Below are some ways I think we can remain flexible.

Top Ten Ways to Remain Flexible:

1) Accept the change: Normally when we're required to be flexible it's because something has changed that we didn't plan for. Accepting the change, whether it's good or bad, is the first step towards remaining flexible.

2) Access needed support: When we're going through changes in life or at work - we need support. The better we are at accessing support, the better we'll be at remaining flexible.

3) Maintain perspective: Maintain a positive perspective no matter what the situation. There's always something good that can come out of every change - be willing to look for it.

4) Be realistic: Set your expectations realistically. When dealing with changes you may have to lower your expectations of yourself for a time.

5) Prioritize: Do only that which needs to be done. It will all get done eventually but during major changes - focus only what is critical.

6) Let go: You can not control every thing in life. Letting go of what you can not control will make managing change much easier.

7) Be quiet: During change lie is often chaotic. Take time away from work or family life to just be quiet. Solutions and creative ideas for managing change often come in quiet moments.

8) Know that it will pass:
Tough times and stressful times happen but they do not last forever. Realize the change you are going through is just a season and it will pass.

9) Sleep, Eat and Take Care of Yourself: Focus on the basics during times of change. Change often brings stress and the best way to deal with stress is to make sure you are taking good care of yourself. Remember whining is not a solution :)

10) Find Humor: There is humor in all of life - the good, the bad and the ugly. believe me - It makes a lot of difference guys :)

"If you do not bend in the wind - you will break!" - author unknown

Hope the above tips may help you to develop excellence in being flexible. Take care, do give your valuable feedback's and have a great week end !

With best regards,
Shamim

1 comment:

Unknown said...

Dear Rtn Shameer Rafeek

Hello Sir. how are u doing.I am Rtn k n ballakrishnan secetary of Rotary Spectrum, U have helped me in preparing the Vote thanks for our clubs installation.
hope u remember me.
Sir, it really gives me a great feeling to read your subjects posted on web site,
i have a problem of implemting it in daily life.how do i do this ,because change is little dificult accept after serving for along time in an oragnisation. Indeed ,i need help.I want to change,more so the anger part is really killing me. I am a cool person, but if someone provokes me, i loose my cool. i did tried several methods,but somehow on the sprout of the moment i unbable to control myself and then after the incident, i regret. Sir, can u help me .
looking forward to hear from u and meet in u.

Regards
k n ballakrishnan