Big change is easier than small. Gradual change – when situations are painful – prolongs distress.
A hard “no” is easier than “maybe.” Decisive transitions draw a line. Gradual changes create complexity.
Big change simplifies life when refusal is required.
Big Change is Easier than Small…
#1. When Roles Change
Moving from individual contributor to manager is a radical shift. Easing into big change is living in limbo. A radical shift allows for emotional clarity, a clean break.
You can’t discover who you’re becoming while clinging to who you were.
#2. When Gradual Change Prolongs Pain
Small changes prolong dissatisfaction. When the current situation is toxic incremental improvement feels like death by a thousand cuts.
Bold moves create clear breaks.
#3. When Soft Commitments Create Confusion
When you’re half in and half out, others don’t know how to relate to you. A clean break simplifies expectations.
#4. When Momentum Matters
Big change creates urgency and focus. It compels people to adapt. Incremental change loses steam over time.
#5. When the Environment Won’t Let Go
The gravity of past patterns defeats the magnetism of new ideas. Others pull you back into old roles. A dramatic exit makes the shift real. It makes returning to former roles unlikely.
Questions to Explore:
- “What new identity are you forming? What do people with that identity do?” (Think of behaviors you aren’t currently doing.)
- “What’s the cost of gradual change? Big change? What are the advantages of a decisive transition?”
- “What would a clean break make possible?”
- “What does gradual change make possible?”
Turning the page hurts less than lingering.
When is jumping into the deep end the best option?
Ten Radical Shifts in Thinking all Leaders Face
Leading Change May Need to Begin with Changing Yourself HBR
Note: Small changes often produce big improvements. Changing two words, for example, changes conversations in a big way. Instead of saying, “We can’t,” ask, “What else?”
