Personal growth, career changes, and just life, require us to handle change. Knowing what is coming can help us prepare and navigate the waters with less stress.
There are several models to describe the Change Cycle and I’m going to share a model that I like from the technology field. Innovation and technology is an industry full of rapid and compounding change. Understanding how humans handle change, whether it’s a software update, or an industry disruption, is a core skill for any IT leader. The model I’ll share with you is called the Gartner Hype Cycle. But it’s reflected in many human cycles like romantic relationships, adopting a puppy, having your first child, or finding a career. It also follows the arc of the hero’s journey, the story outline for most of the popular novels and movies that you adore.
The cycle starts with some kind of trigger. Often something bad has happened. Something has pushed you over the edge far enough to seek a new solution or an innovation.
It’s at this point that expectations start to grow until they top out at what’s called the Peak of Inflated Expectations. Maybe you think that, if you just move to France, every moment after that will be butterflies and rainbows. It might distract you for a while, but you'll just restart the cycle.
When we’re talking about technology products, the Peak of Inflated Expectations is when you see products advertised in the media. At this point, you’ll notice that they’re touted to solve every problem known to the human race including solving your insomnia and the pet hair on your couch.
Not long after the peak, come the realities of life. Everything is not as perfect as it seemed. You thought your new date was a gift from heaven and it turns out they roll the toilet paper the wrong way. Maybe you thought if you just got another degree, that would solve everything, only to find that the competition in the job market is more challenging than you thought. This isn’t a failing on your part or in your judgement, it’s human nature. We tend to overestimate our abilities and our outcomes.
The downward slide eventually ends in The Trough of Disillusionment. It’s here where you probably feel exhausted, overwhelmed, and your self-confidence is nowhere in sight. It’s at this low point that you have a choice to make. You either quit and give up, or you find a way to get up and figure out how to keep going.
The Trough of Disillusionment is a turning point and this is a hard place. You will need to have all of your support, resources, and willpower to pull yourself back up. This is the moment willpower is actually made for.
When you’re at this turning point, if you decide to keep going, you then start the journey to a stronger, more resilient, and sustainable future. This is where you tackle the problems, learn the lessons, and turn your dreams into reality.
I don’t share this cycle with you to discourage you. I know it sounds like a lot of doom and gloom. I share it because I don’t want you to misinterpret a very normal process of change. So many people misinterpret the downward slide as a sign that they’ve made a mistake and they should quit, or they think the feelings of despair are a personal failing.
They give up right when they need to keep going.
Understanding the landscape of the Change Cycle can help you mitigate the highs and lows, give yourself grace through the process, and get you through to the sustainable future you’ve been looking for.
If you'd like support through your own change cycle, I host a group of us who are working through the practical steps of bringing our big ideas into reality, you can check it out here: www.shannonlpost.com/journey.
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