Today, while driving home from a day spent with my daughter, I noticed a car about 40 yards in front of me and one lane over with its turn signal on. As the courteous driver I am I slowed to let the car merge into my lane. After waiting for this car to merge for 15 seconds I realized that the car was not intending to merge, so I moved ahead. Once I moved ahead of the car I watched as other cars did the same. Each car would slow down and wait for this car to merge over into our lane. This car continued to to signal as though it was going to move into the other lane, but never did.
I think we have all seen cars/people do this and we all have become frustrated or at least I usually do when I see this happen. As I watched this happen over and over I kept thinking about the current mortgage industry and the media (including blogs). How many times do we see peers, colleagues “industry experts” or even ourselves continue to signal as though they/we are going to make a change but never do? How often do we slow our own progress for the signals of others?
In this time of turmoil we need to be focused on our core capabilities more than ever. We need to continue to perfect the actions that we can directly control and not be slowed by others signaling a change. There is no doubt that we should all be willing to make a lane change or expect a change to happen in front of us, but to what extent should we allow it to slow us down?
Change looks inevitable to many of us whether it be our product offerings, sales process or staffing. When see a change ahead we need to focus on making these them as efficient as possible and not be overly focused on the speculations of others.
While watching a few cars in my review mirror I noticed some dangerously speed past the car never considered slowing down for the signaling car, some slowed for only a few seconds and some seemed to slow indefinitely. What are you doing? Are you dangerously passing by? Are you still waiting for the car to merge into the next lane or are you making educated decisions and choosing to proceed with caution?
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This is a great analogy, but I see it so many being the car with the blinker on. They sit in a lane that they are comfortable with knowing that eventually they will have to move over. They continue doing what they have always been doing becuase they abhor change. So inevitably they find themselves having to rush into a lane just in time to avoid a forced merge. This action is dangerous not only for them but those around them as well. I often remind people that change is what is necessary for growth. Change is what makes the difference between the successful and unsuccessful. Do not sit in your lane with your eyes on the road and think about how to avoid the changes that are inevitably coming your way. Do not turn your blinker on and then ponder and get lost in the paralysis of analysis. Recognize that a change MUST be made, make the decision to make the change and then execute the change promptly. Remember that there are only two stages of business, growth and death. Change is growth and blinkers are death. Make the change and grow.
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This article and first response are spot on.
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Very applicable; my experience is that change is simple, but not easy. It takes deliberate action. In our business it’s a matter of helping our clients cope with and implement process to enable change (software), but equally important is change in our own business. Our own process, products and service is going through a transition just the same. I think we’ve only recently embraced it and actually “passed the lagging car”. Change is scary, but I’m having a blast right now.
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I cannot wait to join the band wagon of change. It begins for me tomorrow at 10am. See you on the other side of the freeway!
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