I was involved in a meeting recently during which one of the participants said that people are stressed by change. When I asked what people were stressed I was told that “most people” are overwhelmed by the pace and magnitude of change in our world these days, and are wondering how to cope with it all.
Is that your experience? Mine has been that some people are grappling with change-related stress, but many are not. At the risk of over-simplifying things, it appears that people in their forties and older are the group most likely to struggle with the scope and speed of change. However, our studies indicate that younger people barely notice such change. Why? Because change has been a constant in their life; a world driven by change is the only environment they have ever known. They are more likely to be stressed by an environment reflecting a lack of change, which would feel like either death or deterioration to them.
How much of the tension we typically experience in leading an organization is due to the pressure caused by the different sensitivities toward change of the people involved? The anxiety level is probably especially high when we try to satisfy everyone at once – the “one size fits all” approach to ministry – and when the entity is directed by a leader who believes that if people are not happy then he/she is not leading well.
Some of the best leaders I’ve observed are those who remember that the challenges introduced by change are just another opportunity to empower people to apply their gifts toward pursuing a shared vision. Fulfilled vision changes everything anyway; leaders are all about creating positive change. Helping people to put change into proper perspective, and make sense of the new reality created by change is a difficult but continual task of leaders. What have you learned about how to best help people handle change?
March 11, 2010
I think this is fair. My only concern is that what if the lack of noticing means that critical things (changes, issues, concerns) get missed. While the young person IS very comfortable with all of the new technology and changes, that doesn’t mean those things are healthy for us as a society.
March 11, 2010
I resonate with your blog post. As a Christian who is involved in the fast changing world of the web, social media and viral marketing on a daily basis, I straddle the two groups you describe. I am 56 myself and understand the resistance to change because I did not grow up in a world that was changing as fast as it is now and did little to prepare me for it.
On the other hand, In my life journey I have come to embrace change as a constant (amoral) fact of life that cannot be avoided. I’ve ended up in a profession that helps those who seek my advice to navigate through change and make positive healthy strategic choices and decisions in the world of the web.
I have noticed that my generational contemporaries (especially Christians) are more resistant to change than younger people are for the reasons you stated. I personally find the younger generations outlook and perspective on change to be healthier and more attractive to me personally. I think they also generally “get it” from a Christian worldview as well.
March 15, 2010
I’d like to suggest that people do not fear change, they fear loss: of status, of control, of predictability, etc. This would also make sense of the generational data. On the whole, the older generations have “more to lose.” In my experience, a successful leader must peg change to the values of the followers. In the church, this would mean basing change on addressing the gap between what is believed and what is done.
March 15, 2010
Thanks for another thought-provoking post. I am always fascinated by generational differences, but in this case my own studies and experience would point to various types of “change” being stressful and challenging across generations. Okay, I admit that at 51 I’m more resistant to technological and physical changes than I once was. But I don’t remember any studies pointing to generational differences in how hard it is to change a habit. (Have you seen studies on this?) And in the spiritual dimension, I think the miraculous transformation the Bible talks about is equally challenging to all generations (though some might suggest that the older generations are more likely to consider these changes in view of their own mortality…).
March 15, 2010
Personally, the majority of stress and grief in my life has definitely come from change. My parents are missionaries, change was an every present part of my childhood. I find it very unsettling and painful.
March 15, 2010
I am 54, grew up with “sameness” until I was 21; then a lot of change happened for which I was unprepared. I moved 10 times in less than ten years, settled down for a few years, only to have more upheaval. A bittersweet outcome is that I tend to not look too far ahead; therefore I don’t become easily disappointed. I don’t “envision” my future, but allow God to change my course without so much struggle. Granted, it was very difficult getting here, but I do understand how younger people think — or not think — about change. It is part of “the adventure,” a term often used in our home. I agree that change begets fear in most of us because we find ourselves out of control. But it has become for me a very comfortable lifestyle, maybe too comfortable. It’s almost addicting and I have to constantly supress wanting more “adventure.”
March 16, 2010
I read your article and I find myself viewing it through the conservative American lens, As I sat to ponder change in America I then began to consider how it affected Christianity.
I recently (a few months ago) had a dreadful dream that I believed to be from the Lord:
I had a dream where we, a wide ranging group of people, some I knew some I do not, were at a road side “Mom and Pops” store doing our things. I began to notice that it was supposed to be dark outside but the sun was up- it was a time that it would normally be dark outside- I am thinking 10 p.m. I hurriedly began to call my family who lived out west and asked them about what the sun was doing- when I call and ask they then begin to notice that it was dark much earlier than usual and that something was clearly wrong. Most people did not notice this dramatic event- it was as though the rotation of the earth was changing, however, the sun was still in an appropriate position, just not a usual time. I thought “of course if the axis and/or rotation changes, even slightly, then we are looking at global catastrophe- life, AS WE KNOW IT, will be violently destroyed.” As I am seeking to confirm this phenomenon, I am waiting for the storms to come knowing that they must come because of this kind of change. From the first notice of this event the verse at Acts 2: 19 constantly plays in my mind through out the dream; ‘AND I WILL GRANT WONDERS IN THE SKY ABOVE AND SIGNS ON THE EARTH BELOW, BLOOD, AND FIRE, AND VAPOR OF SMOKE.
The fundamentals of life as we know it are in the process of change, the storms that would normally rage immediately at the slightest global change are delayed temporarily but are brewing and gaining strength. I am struck at how few people notice the changes occurring and who can comprehend the ensuing disaster.
I believe that God still speaks to those who have an ear.
March 18, 2010
Helping people to handle change comes down to communicating a vision and laying out a strategy for getting there.
I think a lot of people just change because it is trendy or they have that stagnant feeling.
March 29, 2010
I am 72 and I do not mind change-I believe that it helps to keep us alive and alert. But…. I take to change with my resitrictions. I have a cell phone, but do not give out my number. I want to avoid the interruptions into my life. I believe that is a form of control on my part, and change is about losing that control. People my age and older, are reluctant or fear the loss of that control. It may mean giving up on a part of their life. Perhaps it means coming closer to death? Regardless it is a constant part of our effort to unify a congregation to do God’s work.