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	<title>Change Thinking &#187; practitioner</title>
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		<title>Finding the Balance Between Logic and Creativity</title>
		<link>http://changethinking.net/art-and-science/finding-the-balance-between-logic-and-creativity</link>
		<comments>http://changethinking.net/art-and-science/finding-the-balance-between-logic-and-creativity#comments</comments>
		<pubDate>Tue, 27 Jul 2010 20:28:44 +0000</pubDate>
		<dc:creator>Daryl Conner</dc:creator>
				<category><![CDATA[Art and Science]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[agent]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[behaviors]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[change]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[client]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[degree of difficulty]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[implementation]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Patterns]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[practitioner]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[success]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[tools]]></category>

		<guid isPermaLink="false">http://changethinking.net/?p=974</guid>
		<description><![CDATA[BREAKING NEWS: Daryl will speak on bridging the gap between project management and change management on Peter de Jager's webinar program this Thursday, July 29 at noon. To learn more and register please visit https://www2.gotomeeting.com/register/676031683. 

Change agents who practice their craft with the proper balance of art and science foster success patterns and minimize failure patterns. In doing so, they bring to bear a powerful competitive advantage for their clients.

However, finding that balance is a challenge.

Professional change facilitation resides on a continuum, with “art” and “science” at the poles. Our “craft” is represented by a sliding point that can reside at any position between the two extremes. Movement toward or away from either end of the continuum shouldn’t be based on our comfort with or prejudice for one or the other. Instead, we should practice our craft as circumstances dictate…sometimes skewed toward the science of our work, sometimes reflecting more of the artful aspects.]]></description>
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		<slash:comments>0</slash:comments>
		</item>
		<item>
		<title>How to Get Unstuck</title>
		<link>http://changethinking.net/are-you-stuck/how-to-get-unstuck</link>
		<comments>http://changethinking.net/are-you-stuck/how-to-get-unstuck#comments</comments>
		<pubDate>Wed, 07 Jul 2010 15:30:01 +0000</pubDate>
		<dc:creator>Daryl Conner</dc:creator>
				<category><![CDATA[Are You Stuck?]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[agent]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[behaviors]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[change]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[client]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[communication]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[empowerment]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[implementation]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[lens]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[mindset]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Patterns]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[practitioner]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[resources]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[sponsor]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[success]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[tools]]></category>

		<guid isPermaLink="false">http://changethinking.net/?p=879</guid>
		<description><![CDATA[In my last post, I wrote about what happens when initiatives become “stuck.” Challenges and obstacles to implementation are a regular and expected occurrence in any change initiative. They become problematic, however, when the attending change agent doesn’t have a plan he or she believes in, or even an idea, of how to solve the problem.

There is a framework practitioners can use to determine how to get unstuck, regardless of the nature of the desired outcome, or the implementation approach used (Kotter, Bridges, Anderson, Prosci, Conner, etc.), or the specific actions they call into play. This post provides a way to look at a generic intervention process and how to apply it to any change or execution methodology.]]></description>
		<wfw:commentRss>http://changethinking.net/are-you-stuck/how-to-get-unstuck/feed</wfw:commentRss>
		<slash:comments>1</slash:comments>
		</item>
		<item>
		<title>Patterns Aren&#8217;t Created, They Are Revealed</title>
		<link>http://changethinking.net/patterns/patterns-arent-created-they-are-revealed</link>
		<comments>http://changethinking.net/patterns/patterns-arent-created-they-are-revealed#comments</comments>
		<pubDate>Thu, 24 Jun 2010 13:27:18 +0000</pubDate>
		<dc:creator>Daryl Conner</dc:creator>
				<category><![CDATA[Patterns]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[change]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[client]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[degree of difficulty]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[implement]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[lens]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[nimble]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[practitioner]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[predisposition]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Resilience]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[tools]]></category>

		<guid isPermaLink="false">http://changethinking.net/?p=859</guid>
		<description><![CDATA[We don’t own patterns, yet we are all responsible for them.

Some of us might be fortunate enough to be the first to observe and document a pattern, but we didn’t invent it, we uncovered it. Adjusting to the unfamiliar has been part of the human experience since the beginning of time. Any change-related pattern we use was in play long before any of us started practicing this craft. And even though some of us have fashioned our own particular way of articulating transition dynamics (nomenclature, principles, guidelines, axioms) the basic patterns can’t be commandeered by any of us.

So, we can’t take credit for conceiving the patterns of change, but because we did discover them, we have a responsibility]]></description>
		<wfw:commentRss>http://changethinking.net/patterns/patterns-arent-created-they-are-revealed/feed</wfw:commentRss>
		<slash:comments>0</slash:comments>
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		<item>
		<title>Five Lenses for Viewing Patterns of Change</title>
		<link>http://changethinking.net/patterns/five-lenses-for-viewing-patterns-of-change</link>
		<comments>http://changethinking.net/patterns/five-lenses-for-viewing-patterns-of-change#comments</comments>
		<pubDate>Thu, 10 Jun 2010 18:19:47 +0000</pubDate>
		<dc:creator>Daryl Conner</dc:creator>
				<category><![CDATA[Patterns]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[agent]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[alignment]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[business imperative]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[cascade]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[change]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[degree of difficulty]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[enrollment]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[installation]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[intent]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[mindset]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[practitioner]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[realization]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[risk]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[sponsor]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[transformation]]></category>

		<guid isPermaLink="false">http://changethinking.net/?p=839</guid>
		<description><![CDATA[We’ve been talking about lenses that practitioners can use to identify patterns, and to help sponsors deal with change. I’m sure there are lenses you pay most attention to, and I encourage you to share them here. I’ll tell you about five I often rely on:

    * The importance placed on matching challenge and commitment to change
    * The importance placed on the intent of the change
    * The importance placed on sponsors
    * The importance leaders place on agents
    * Leaders’ understanding of the nature of organizational change success

Each of these lenses reveals a series of mindset and behavior patterns.

Here are a few representative examples of the success mindset patterns]]></description>
		<wfw:commentRss>http://changethinking.net/patterns/five-lenses-for-viewing-patterns-of-change/feed</wfw:commentRss>
		<slash:comments>0</slash:comments>
		</item>
		<item>
		<title>Use Mindset and Behavior Patterns to Your Advantage</title>
		<link>http://changethinking.net/patterns/use-mindset-and-behavior-patterns-to-your-advantage</link>
		<comments>http://changethinking.net/patterns/use-mindset-and-behavior-patterns-to-your-advantage#comments</comments>
		<pubDate>Tue, 01 Jun 2010 18:16:40 +0000</pubDate>
		<dc:creator>Daryl Conner</dc:creator>
				<category><![CDATA[Patterns]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[advocate]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[agent]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[behaviors]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[business imperative]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[capacity]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[change]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[client]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[commitment]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[communications]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[culture]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[implementation]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[incremental]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[intent]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[lens]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[mindset]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[practitioner]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[resources]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[sponsor]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[target]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[transformational]]></category>

		<guid isPermaLink="false">http://changethinking.net/?p=828</guid>
		<description><![CDATA[Once you understand that a specific mindset and its associated behaviors  can either facilitate or impede success, you have a level of insight that can be truly invaluable to a sponsor who is less familiar with these kinds of change dynamics.

Mindsets are made up of frames of reference (the ways individuals make sense of situations) that lead to the formation of priorities (the relative importance of various options). Shared mindsets within an organization serve as the foundations of culture and ultimately lead to common patterns of behavior.

Successful change requires a specific mindset that is shared among key players as they perform their respective roles. This “success mindset” reflects the]]></description>
		<wfw:commentRss>http://changethinking.net/patterns/use-mindset-and-behavior-patterns-to-your-advantage/feed</wfw:commentRss>
		<slash:comments>2</slash:comments>
		</item>
		<item>
		<title>Patterns: Order Beneath the Confusion</title>
		<link>http://changethinking.net/patterns/patterns-order-beneath-the-confusion</link>
		<comments>http://changethinking.net/patterns/patterns-order-beneath-the-confusion#comments</comments>
		<pubDate>Wed, 26 May 2010 17:27:40 +0000</pubDate>
		<dc:creator>Daryl Conner</dc:creator>
				<category><![CDATA[Patterns]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[agent]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[behaviors]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[change]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[implementation]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[lens]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[mindset]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[practitioner]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[sponsor]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[target]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[transformational]]></category>

		<guid isPermaLink="false">http://changethinking.net/?p=817</guid>
		<description><![CDATA[“What we call chaos is just patterns we haven't recognized. What we call random is just patterns we can’t decipher. What we can't understand we call nonsense. What we can't read we call gibberish.” ~Chuck Palahniuk

How do we make sense out of the often extremely complicated and confusing dynamics that influence the outcomes of our change initiatives? And once we understand what’s going on, how do we help our sponsors (and, of course, agents and targets) grasp what is unfolding and choose the best course of action, given the present circumstances?

We could use simplistic explanations, but those don’t describe the depth of the situation. Too often, we get lost in the convoluted intricacies of the change and offer help that is more baffling than enlightening. Instead, what we must find,]]></description>
		<wfw:commentRss>http://changethinking.net/patterns/patterns-order-beneath-the-confusion/feed</wfw:commentRss>
		<slash:comments>1</slash:comments>
		</item>
		<item>
		<title>Herding Strong Egos</title>
		<link>http://changethinking.net/confessions-of-a-methodology-bigot/herding-strong-egos</link>
		<comments>http://changethinking.net/confessions-of-a-methodology-bigot/herding-strong-egos#comments</comments>
		<pubDate>Thu, 20 May 2010 14:28:39 +0000</pubDate>
		<dc:creator>Daryl Conner</dc:creator>
				<category><![CDATA[Confessions of a Methodology Bigot]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[agent]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[change]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[practitioner]]></category>

		<guid isPermaLink="false">http://changethinking.net/?p=795</guid>
		<description><![CDATA[Hi. My name is Daryl Conner and I’m a methodology bigot.

It takes a strong ego to be a successful change agent (it’s not a role for the timid), yet it is this very ego that can pull us over to the dark side of professional arrogance. What can temper our self-confidence enough so that we sustain the inner strength we need, but maintain mutual respect among the different approaches? In my experience, three things can help keep strong egos in alignment with, instead of against, each other.]]></description>
		<wfw:commentRss>http://changethinking.net/confessions-of-a-methodology-bigot/herding-strong-egos/feed</wfw:commentRss>
		<slash:comments>3</slash:comments>
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		<item>
		<title>The Question Isn’t “If,” It’s “To What Degree?”</title>
		<link>http://changethinking.net/confessions-of-a-methodology-bigot/the-question-isn%e2%80%99t-%e2%80%9cif%e2%80%9d-it%e2%80%99s-%e2%80%9cto-what-degree%e2%80%9d</link>
		<comments>http://changethinking.net/confessions-of-a-methodology-bigot/the-question-isn%e2%80%99t-%e2%80%9cif%e2%80%9d-it%e2%80%99s-%e2%80%9cto-what-degree%e2%80%9d#comments</comments>
		<pubDate>Tue, 18 May 2010 16:35:58 +0000</pubDate>
		<dc:creator>Daryl Conner</dc:creator>
				<category><![CDATA[Confessions of a Methodology Bigot]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[agent]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[change]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[practitioner]]></category>

		<guid isPermaLink="false">http://changethinking.net/?p=793</guid>
		<description><![CDATA[Hi. My name is Daryl Conner and I’m a methodology bigot.

In this series, I’ve been trying to challenge all of us to search out any tendencies of the methodology bigot that we might harbor. We’d rather not admit it, but we probably all have some elements buried inside us. It is hard to be fully dedicated to an approach and avoid crossing the line into disregard, if not intolerance, of alternative perspectives.

No, you’re probably not a full-blown dogmatist as characterized by all the attributes I have described. Neither am I, but]]></description>
		<wfw:commentRss>http://changethinking.net/confessions-of-a-methodology-bigot/the-question-isn%e2%80%99t-%e2%80%9cif%e2%80%9d-it%e2%80%99s-%e2%80%9cto-what-degree%e2%80%9d/feed</wfw:commentRss>
		<slash:comments>0</slash:comments>
		</item>
		<item>
		<title>Take Your Medicine Whether You Feel Sick or Not</title>
		<link>http://changethinking.net/confessions-of-a-methodology-bigot/take-your-medicine-whether-you-feel-sick</link>
		<comments>http://changethinking.net/confessions-of-a-methodology-bigot/take-your-medicine-whether-you-feel-sick#comments</comments>
		<pubDate>Thu, 13 May 2010 12:52:34 +0000</pubDate>
		<dc:creator>Daryl Conner</dc:creator>
				<category><![CDATA[Confessions of a Methodology Bigot]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[agent]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[change]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[practitioner]]></category>

		<guid isPermaLink="false">http://changethinking.net/?p=807</guid>
		<description><![CDATA[Go to the beginning of this series.

Hi. My name is Daryl Conner and I’m a methodology bigot.

Many reading this series on the methodology bigot’s mindset may be appalled at the notion such thinking could survive in this age of enlightenment, much less within the civilized, savvy field of change management. Some may think that if this kind of partisan judgment does exist, it must be limited to a small minority. I’m not suggesting that methodology bigotry is universal among change practitioners, but it’s far more prevalent than is healthy for our individual development, or the general maturation of our field. In fact, this kind of prejudice has become pervasive precisely because, for the most part, practitioners are unaware it has taken up residence within themselves and within our ranks. And a problem unrecognized usually means  a problem in unabated growth mode.

Methodology bigots don’t wake up in the morning and say to themselves, “It’s a good day]]></description>
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		<slash:comments>0</slash:comments>
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		<item>
		<title>We Have Met the Enemy and It Is Us</title>
		<link>http://changethinking.net/confessions-of-a-methodology-bigot/we-have-met-the-enemy-and-it-is-us</link>
		<comments>http://changethinking.net/confessions-of-a-methodology-bigot/we-have-met-the-enemy-and-it-is-us#comments</comments>
		<pubDate>Tue, 11 May 2010 14:13:40 +0000</pubDate>
		<dc:creator>Daryl Conner</dc:creator>
				<category><![CDATA[Confessions of a Methodology Bigot]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[agent]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[change]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[practitioner]]></category>

		<guid isPermaLink="false">http://changethinking.net/?p=783</guid>
		<description><![CDATA[Hi. My name is Daryl Conner and I’m a methodology bigot.

The first step toward recovery for any of us who might have fallen into the “pit of arrogance” is to acknowledge the problem.

One of the reasons AA is so successful is that its members know first-hand the challenges of alcoholism. They also know all the ways people can kid themselves into thinking their problem is under control when it’s not. No one can be as supportive or as brutally honest with an alcoholic as another alcoholic can.

It is from this perspective that I am both empathetic and confrontive toward methodology bigots. I am one. (Yes, you read correctly. I used the present tense).

As with many deep-seated dysfunctions, healing from this destructive mindset is not a destination, it is]]></description>
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		<slash:comments>2</slash:comments>
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