I’m working with two people in the same large corporation. It’s in tremendous flux—the division they are in has reorganized something like six times in the last two years. (That chaos, not organization!) Theoretically, I am doing the same thing with each of them—helping them build their brand and find a spot using their talents within the changing company. But the conversations go very differently. Maia reports in each time with a list of actions she’s taken since our last call. She’s clear on her brand and is reaching out to as many people as she can to let them know what she’s good at and what she’s looking for. She’s now choosing between several offers. Larry is not getting the same results. He’s not comfortable pursuing several avenues at once. He keeps looking at the company’s internal job board, applying for a particular job and waiting till he finds out if he got it to apply for the next one. Larry has a lot of procedural thinking, which is very step by step, and Maia a lot of innovative, which is comfortable with simultaneous action. Unfortunately the times we live in don’t allow a lot of time for sequential action. It just takes too long. His company just announced a hiring freeze and so now he’s out of luck. As I write about in AdaptAbility, whether your clients (or you) naturally think sequentially or not, chances are they can’t afford to do things sequentially right now. Things are just moving too fast and are too much in flux right now to pursue one course of action to its end before beginning to try something else. Simultaneity creates an advantage because when you have more than one ball in the air, you increase your chances that something will come of at least one of them. But I can’t tell you how many people don’t get this. We’ve been told to focus and persist so much that we think it’s the only way. I always suggest to folks, whatever their issue is, to try to take several actions simultaneously—look for work in a company and try a home business. Or search for a distributor for your products while developing an on-line strategy. Look at renting your house at the same time as selling it. Try fertility treatments and look into adoption. The same is true for us. Coach, teach and write. Join a coaching cadre and take private clients….Taking multiple actions creates a greater possibility of success.
About MJ Ryan
A member of Professional Thinking Partners who is recognized as a leading expert in change, M.J. Ryan specializes in coaching high performance executives, entrepreneurs, individuals, and leadership teams around the world to maximize performance and fulfillment. Her clients include Microsoft, Royal Dutch Shell, Chevron, Hewitt Associates, and Frito Lay. Her work is based on a combination of positive psychology, strengths-based coaching, the wisdom traditions, and cutting edge brain research. Her new book, titled “AdaptAbility: How to Survive Change You Didn't Ask For” was recently released published by Random House’s Broadway Books. She lives in the San Francisco Bay Area with her husband and daughter.
Development by Design is uniquely specialized in Onboarding Coaching to support leaders moving into new organizations and new roles. We also coach intact Leadership Teams.
Brett McBurnie comes to coaching from a diverse and unique background. Born in Toronto in 1951, he attended school in East York and eventually went on to study Classical Studies (Greek and Latin); at the University of Toronto , with the purpose in mind of pursuing a general but well rounded education.
