The head won’t go where the heart hasn’t been

5304 Leading organization change caught my attention as how I would promote change and be able to influence those around me to embrace change.  As a software specialist in financial aid, I find myself thinking that many people won’t be fond of having automation take over the manual processes that staff have been doing for years.  “Why change something that’s not broken?”, is the question I’m told time after time when I mention that automation can make processes more streamlined so they can focus their time on other projects and helping students. I even find myself thinking that everyone should be able to learn this since its necessary for their roles, but why is everyone so against change?

This is when I realized that speaking with the heart will influence the mind.  If people can relate to your Why, then people will follow and see this change as beneficial.  Instead of feeding facts and numbers, you must connect with your audience on a personal level than showing them the result.  I’ve often seen leaders from higher education showing the change they have made and how quickly they achieved results but never once mention the struggles and efforts that went behind to get there. I began to wonder how I would promote change with my innovation plan. Instead of stating why the change is needed, we should begin connecting on the emotional side where you can touch people’s emotions as to why this change is beneficial (Harapnuik, 2015).  Once people begin to understand the why in your change, it creates a sense of urgency that can motivate others that change is not just beneficial but needed for success (Kotter, 2013).

I look forward in seeing how the rest of the course presents different methods in promoting change and influencing your audience with heart lead into the mind.

Harapnuik, D. (2015, January 9). The head won’t go where the heart hasn’t been. It’s About Learning. https://www.harapnuik.org/?p=5461 

Dr. John Kotter. (2013, August 15). Leading change: Establish a sense of urgency. YouTube.

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