{"id":5302,"date":"2021-11-18T17:08:23","date_gmt":"2021-11-18T17:08:23","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.inspo.ie\/?p=5302"},"modified":"2021-11-18T17:08:24","modified_gmt":"2021-11-18T17:08:24","slug":"change-the-ugly-zone-and-2-ideas","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.inspo.ie\/change-the-ugly-zone-and-2-ideas\/","title":{"rendered":"Change, the Ugly Zone, and 2 Ideas."},"content":{"rendered":"\n

Twelve years in the corporate world. Looking back, in some ways it was like being a cocoon. Or, perhaps oddly, a womb, of sorts.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

And so being borne into the self-employed world in 2016 was a shock. I felt about as ready for it as a new born in the National Maternity Hospital is for life (although I could swear that my five month-old nephew has been here before).<\/p>\n\n\n\n

For starters, I had no laptop or phone. Both had belonged to the mothership. I had no IT department to ring now either. I was the IT department!! Trust me, you do not want me as your IT department\u2026..<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u2018Em, have you tried turning it on and off again?\u2019<\/p>\n\n\n\n

And then there was the, \u2018so what do you do?\u2019 question.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Can I please just say, \u2018oh, I work in a multinational\u2019?.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

In essence, what was happening for me was massive change, dressed up in the flowerful attire of a big career move.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

And it felt awkward, uncomfortable, vulnerable and awkward. And that\u2019s just me picking from the top-shelf of descriptors.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

As performance expert David Alred<\/a> would say of my predicament, I was in the \u2018ugly zone\u2019 of change. The immediate aftermath of \u2018normal\u2019 and miles away from normalising \u2018new\u2019.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The Ugly Zone.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

What can we do to manage the ‘ugly zone’ of change when we land there?<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Plan:<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

By all accounts, Rome took more than a few days to build. Significant change is no different. Work out the exact end-goal. And then create steps to get there. Completing one small step (by-step) is a lot less daunting then tackling one giant leap.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Celebrate Successes:<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

With each step done, you are closer to \u2018home\u2019. You are also building confidence and belief. It\u2019s nice, maybe important even, to raise a glass, a cup, a mug to mark the progress. Sure do your \u2018praise the process\u2019 and your \u2018power of yet\u2019s\u2019 <\/a>too. It\u2019s a reinforcer of the good to make any celebration of the forward step taken.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Change is everywhere.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Is it in your work life just now?<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Can these two suggestions make a positive change\/validation for you in your approach?<\/p>\n\n\n\n

This blog is based on one of the six key motivational themes of the Inspo Next Chapter Series. It\u2019s a motivational series helping the staff of businesses to map out the best post-pandemic chapter in their work and personal lives. Could the Series be of benefit to your business? If so, please do get in touch at john@inspo.ie to learn more about the Series.<\/em><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Twelve years in the corporate world. Looking back, in some ways it was like being a cocoon. Or, perhaps oddly, a womb, of sorts. And so being borne into the self-employed world in 2016 was a shock. 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