“If it ain’t broke, don’t fix it” used to be a common expression. We don’t hear this one as much as we used to, do we? With the speed of change today, waiting until something doesn’t work any more can mean lost opportunity, and even obsolescence.
Last week I met with someone in a middle management position. He is happy in his job, likes his team and who is works for, and enjoys his work. He was looking for a change. He explained that, due to better technology and changing patterns, his position was becoming less important. As he looked ahead, he saw his salary stagnating, and he wanted to develop “Plan B” while he still had time to do so. He has what I call a ‘healthy discontent” with where he is at.
Most of us can remember when we took at weekly trip to the video store to select a movie. Now almost all of them are gone. Even if you ran the best video store around, you would probably be struggling. Families now do not even need to leave their home to select just about any movie they want. I remember a friend who owned a typewriter shop. When he saw changes coming, he wisely expanded his business to selling and servicing office machines. His strategy wasn’t to just cross his fingers and wait. He anticipated the change, put together an action plan, and carried the plan through with discipline and focus.
How about you? Think of your business or your profession. What are the changes that are occurring? What are the implications of these changes to you and your team? How do you need to respond? What new opportunities can come from these changes? If we ask ourselves these questions and follow up with action, we will be able to fix something before it breaks.
