Preparing for Change and Uncertainty

Back in March 2020, I was all set to travel to California to record a LinkedIn Learning course about Preparing for Change. Needless to say, I didn’t make it.?

Instead, I got to do some real-life testing of my own course material – preparing myself and my family for the uncertainty and chaos descending on the world around us.

A few months later, through the magic of LinkedIn’s Remote Live Action set up, we recorded virtually in my home office. The same course: minus the Californian backdrop but with that added insight from those early pandemic days.

The best of my lockdown revelations came during a game of Super Mario World with my little boy. If you’re a fan of the classic video game, you’ll know that Mario always gets himself a Power-Up to help him swerve the perils in his path. Whether it’s a cape to help him fly past a deadly pit of lava or a penguin suit to help him swim swiftly past a killer squid, he finds the Power-Up he needs to see him through. As a player, I noticed that as soon as I got that Power-Up, I felt more capable in the face of whatever challenge was ahead, confident to tackle it…I even felt more motivated to keep going.?

So, I define a real-life Power-Up as a boost to capability, confidence, and motivation. An action we can take to build the belief that we have what it takes to get through whatever challenge lies ahead.?Or, to put in into academic terms, a Power-Up is a boost to self-efficacy.?Self-efficacy was first coined by Albert Bandura (a social psychologist and professor in Stanford University) in 1977. It’s our belief in our own power and capability to get through a specific challenge.?So, it’s pretty important during prolonged times of stress and adversity.?Like now.

Our brains are hardcore prediction devices: constantly sizing up what’s in front of us and making subconscious judgements on whether we’re up to the task at hand. And that has a direct impact on our motivation to give it a go. So, here’s where Mario’s lesson can come in handy. When times are tough, you can give yourself a Power-Up – convincing your brain that you are up to the challenge, before it even has a chance to talk you down. And that belief is integral to your ability to cope with what’s ahead – whether that’s in the next few hours, days, weeks or even months.?

We can get strategic about it – working on big ticket Power-Ups over time. Or we can use the idea in a more day-to-day way.

Big Ticket Power-Ups

Let’s start with those big ticket boosts. When working with teams going through change,?I usually focus on 5 main Power-Up themes.?

Wellbeing

To power up your?Wellbeing?try to get crystal clear on what wellbeing really means to you, and what combination of factors allow you to experience it. It might be a yoga class, a jog, or a few minutes blasting your favourite tune. Make note of which ones really make a difference. Once you have this clarity, you will feel more confident that you can tap into what you need when challenges do arise.

Skills & Capabilities?

When change is afoot, people often report an underlying fear that they won’t have the skills needed for the unfamiliar future. To power up your?Skills & Capabilities?I recommend two steps. 1) Name one thing you’d like to learn. 2) Dedicate some time each week to progressing that skill. If you’re feeling overwhelmed – remember it can be as simple a podcast, a webinar or observing a colleague doing something well. Even just a small action in pursuit of that skill will all add to the bank of self-efficacy you need to see you through the uncertainty ahead.

Career

The Big Resignation isn’t the only way forward in 2022. You can power up your?Career?even if you stay right where you are. Are there lateral moves you can do???Secondments you can take? Networks you can join? Every little boost you give yourself will help you feel more confident, capable, and motivated during the uncertain times ahead.

Routine

Having a routine and boundaries that are aligned with how you best operate sets you up with a stable grounding that can buffer against wider uncertainty. To power up your?Routine,?take a look back at the last two years and see if you can get clarity on what has worked for you. Focus on the boundaries you draw between work and home life (Maybe the blend of work and home suits you well? Maybe you prefer to keep work a bit separate?) Use this insight to find a routine that feels stable enough to allow you to manage external volatility.

Connection and community?

Through adverse times, a sense of belonging and connectivity is one of the factors that really protects us and even helps us thrive.?You can power up your community by finding small ways to connect with others each day.?By strengthening the relationships and building trust amongst people you work with, your capacity to deal with uncertainty will be strengthened too.?

Everyday Power-Ups

Now let’s think about those everyday Power-Ups. Sometimes this can be as simple as a great cup of coffee. But if you want to ground it in psychology, let’s go back to Bandura.??Bandura’s research showed that there are proven ways to boost self-efficacy and succeed in our chosen path. The one I rely on most is to (as Bandura puts it) ‘experience success’: Even the smallest triumphs you find in everyday life will add to the evidence bank your brain collects about your capabilities – giving you more confidence to keep going, no matter what comes your way. During the darkest moments in the pandemic, I started setting myself little challenges here and there to boost my experience of success.?

A game of Super Mario is a perfect example. More recently, a quick Wordle. But my favourite lockdown Power-Up was the day I re-organised the linen cupboard. From time to time, I still open it up to quietly admire the towelling symmetry.?

Did you use any Power-Ups during lockdown? Or when you know there’s a challenge to overcome? Have a think about what little action you could take to experience even a small boost of success in your daily life - and start noticing the ones that really make a difference to how you feel about taking on the day ahead.?

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

When you start focussing on what you *can* do in spite of uncertainty, you stop focusing on the discomfort that comes because of what you *can’t*.??And you soon find what you need to be able to show up, even when you’re surrounded by the unfamiliar. And then, rather than feeling unnerved by it, you start to feel empowered to be part of it.?

So, next time you find yourself questioning your ability to keep going, just ask yourself – what’s my Power-Up here? And take an action – no matter how small – that you know will serve you well into the future.

PS: Each of the Big Ticket Power-Ups are featured in more detail in the Preparing yourself for Change course which you can find by clicking here:

This newsletter is a part of a series to help you find ways to change your experience of?work?for the?better. Subscribe and you'll find it in your inbox every other week.