Innovators of Change Comic: “[Grunt] Be frozen, change!”
This comic plays off the classic Kurt Lewin 3-step model of change: Unfreeze-Change-Refreeze. Of course, Lewin reportedly never proposed the model as it’s interpreted, and didn’t use the word “refreeze” which implies a false stability.
Instead, the idea is that when introducing a change — or a better word, for most instances, may be “improvement” — sustainability of higher levels of performance is hard, and often short-lived. To counter this relapse, the change goal needs precision that includes a desire for permanency at the new level of performance. In other words, reaching the new level of performance is not enough; building a habit of the new level performance is the intended outcome. Measuring over time becomes essential.
As a CEO or top executive, if you’re implementing organizational change, you will want to consider ongoing measurement techniques of organizational performance, individual performance, and culture.
As a leader, when you’re working towards changing your own behaviors to demonstrate new habit, it’s important to realize that once is not enough. To create change within yourself requires not only self-awareness but commitment and repetition.
To put the impact in clear terms, we have to freeze the positive changes at higher levels of performance in order to prepare ourselves for the future potential of even higher performance, and to keep ourselves ready to capitalize on desirable opportunities for us as a business or as an individual.
A couple other thoughts:
How frustrating is it when the freezer door won’t close? This seems to happen more often in life than I would expect. Apparently, one of the most common issues is the door seal, though in my experience, it’s something tilted and is blocking the door.
What do you think that steam is that is coming out of the freezer? I’m a little worried about the snowflakes.
Feel free to use the image as a coloring or doodle page as you think about leading your organization, getting the best out of people, and driving organizational change.