The holidays bring people back to town from all over. Deep down project manager (and thanks to a previous life as sous chef, waiter, cook etc) that I am the gathering is typically at my home. Small gatherings they are not. Two leaves in the table and 14 friends from three decades back and the 2009 holidays are in full swing.
My family is used to these spontaneous gatherings with a role for each. We sometimes switch but we each have our specific skills. Often guests show up early just to be involved with the excitement and energy of the event. They soon find their forte too, to the point that they may take a specific process as their responsibility- maybe the desert or the appetizer or getting the table pretty and fancy.
How does this fit into a blog about change?
First as I listen to the rustling of tonight’s holiday meal with a background of soft and moving Christmas music with my daughter and dog at my side I realize how valuable and important it is to tie together the energy and distinctness of people. The holidays are for that with family, friends and community.
Given a little time to think, to hear the rain patter down and to watch the boats pass by in the Puget Sound (now it is a holiday at grandmas house) I see how many things around us are mini change management processes.
Some connections-
There is the end state of the food reaching readiness all together/same time. There is the energy of voluntary participation. Skills are assessed and directed to the area where they will have the most value. Development is a distinct part of the experience (one of my musts and differentiators for change). This has happened before, each year in a slightly different way with different resources. It has become repeatable. Yet it is never the same; not even close.
There are often the disagreements of approach, process and perspective- even with 30 year friends and lifetime families. There are the small dramas of hurt feelings and stories (the fabric of culture) that seem to resurface with each new meeting. There are the power struggles over attention, especially with children (who have the least amount of information and are the most confused about how to be part of the big picture).
One thing follows the next in smooth succession as absorbable change should. In the process problems (bad timing for a turkey, water that will not boil, a shortage of silverware, a dishwasher that no one started …) surface but course corrections or the addition of another resource steer the direction of the event.
We, as executives and consultants, would do well to look at the holiday events that are truly eventful and smooth and emulate that in our workday change initiatives.
Happy Holidays from Whidbey.
