What dog-sitting over the holidays taught me about Change Management

This Christmas, I got the best festive magic gift ever: time with the world’s loveliest couple of French bulldogs, Frida and Cleo. Two of my friends decided to go spend the holidays with their families back in Mexico, and they had been looking for a dog-sitter for their fur-babies with no success. When we met at an event in early December, they mentioned their challenge, and I said “Hey, if they can move in with me for the holidays, I am up for it.” A few days later, after yet another dog-sitting dead-end, I got the job!!!

It really felt like early Christmas when they moved in during the first week of December. Although my couch is an immense 10-seat extravaganza, barely 5 minutes later we were all three sandwiched in the same corner. Not later than that very first evening, I sent a note to their parents wishing them a restful, joyful festive trip, and giving them heads-up they would come back to fierce shared custody negotiations.

I have been enjoying our time together immensely – they are sitting by my side as I type this piece, editing as I go. They have the sweetest nature, yet very distinct personalities. Cleo is all about attention, while Frida is more… socially awkward. There are two memories especially near and dear to my heart from our time together so far. One is the New Year’s Eve. When the fireworks and firecrackers started to go off, Frida got more scared than Cleo. As I was holding and kissing Frida, Cleo was glued to my thigh. When she realized her sister was having a hard time, she started gently licking Frida’s paws, then climbed into my lap, and covered her as widely and tightly as she could. When Frida’s breathing got back to normal, they started to munch on each other’s ears, and soon after they were running around the apartment.

The other memory is made up of all the times we went to the “cinema”. There is a platform on top of the entrance into the building’s garage, and it offers a nice and safe panorama over the street. The girls love to go there on our daily walks, and spend some time watching the traffic. That has been our “cinema” for the past month. To get there, we have to climb a few steps. Frida is a bit curvier than Cleo, and each time we get to the climb, she looks a bit overwhelmed by the task ahead. She then starts to climb, huffing and puffing more and more determined with each step. She reminds me of The Little Engine That Could, the character created in 1930 by Hungarian-born American writer Arnold Munk, under the pen name Watty Piper. Frida’s signature Frenchie noises almost sound like “I think I can, I think I can, I think I can”, and then finally “I thought I could.” She makes me smile every single time, and she is an adorable reminder of optimism and determination. ??

There are so many things I have learned from them. I will try to condense my learning in a short collection of key takeaways for Change Management. So here we go. I think I can, I think I can, I think I can…

Routines are the guardians of willpower. Research has been proving time and time again that willpower alone is not enough to get us through what we set out for ourselves, regardless of whether we aim for a healthier diet in our personal life or a digital transformation within our organizations. Moreover, according to studies, willpower is not as limitless as advertised by popular belief. It is a finite resource, and needs to be used carefully and intentionally. There are also two “willpower vampires” we encounter on a day-to-day basis: avoiding temptations and decision making. We basically use up a lot of our willpower to control ourselves and make choices. For years now, one of my New Year resolutions (it is their season, after all) has been to go out for a walk, no matter how short, every single day. How many years do you think I was successful at this? Please answer truthfully, and no worries, I won’t take it personally… yeah, you guessed it correctly!!! Having the snoring love dumplings for the holidays meant that I had to incorporate their daily walks routine into my own schedule. No more “I am not going out because it is too cold or too rainy or too peopley out there or my kneecap will soon fall off.” Every single day, I took them out for their walks, and we went to the “cinema”. This made me reflect on the importance of routines over sheer willpower, and ask myself what routines I could build to keep myself honest to my goals, and equally what routines I could further develop in my Change Management work? What organizational routines do you have in place to help people move forward? Add to the “Where there’s a will there’s a way” adage the mission-critical mention “and where there’s a routine there’s consistent progress on that way.”

Always choose mindful over mind-full. Dogs in particular, and animals in general, are THE masters of mindfulness, according to extensive research. They simply live in the moment. I have no idea what they think, but I guess it might be something like: “Hooman is slow this morning. This bush smells of that poodle on the fourth floor, let me rectify this. Grass is so beautiful. Oh, pigeon, pigeon, pigeon!!! Hooman, catch-up! What a great stick! Enough nature, let’s go home.” Pets are completely unconcerned with anything other than what is happening now, and when you interact by playing, petting, or snuggling them, you can experience that same sense of presence. Practicing being mindful over mind-full with Frida and Cleo also reminded me of the importance of being present over being perfect in a relationship, be it personal or professional, of suspending judgment, and also leaving the past in the past and the future for the future. Change Management work is about human connection – igniting it, nurturing it, enriching it, above and beyond anything else. And all these reminders are meaningful insights into how to go about touching people’s minds and hearts in a way that makes a difference.

“If you don’t ask, the answer is always no.” Frida and Cleo are the most adorable and lovable furry embodiments of this saying, most often attributed to American novelist Nora Roberts. They always always always ask for what they want, and they do it repeatedly until they get it. They ask for their food, water, walks, toys, best spots on the couch, pieces of carrots, mangoes, bread (they are totally in love with my homemade bread, the best food review ever!!!), and my personal favorites: cuddles, snuggles and kisses. They are constant reminders that persistence does pay off big time! Never assume that people know what you need and want, and they just decided not to give those to you or are waiting for the right time to make their offer. Ask for what you need and want, in a clear way, and why not in a progressively assertive way. Ask for resources, decisions, help, and take all replies as temporary. Come back and ask again.

This coming Monday, January 17, would have been American actress and animal activist Betty White’s 100th birthday. In honor of her memory, here’s a lovely quote from her: “Animals don’t lie. Animals don’t criticize. If animals have moody days, they handle them better than humans do.” Frida and Cleo have been honoring this every single day. They also keep on reminding me that family doesn’t have to be blood, that play is important, and love is unconditional.

Until next week, keep calm and always ask for what you want. Then ask again and again.