In situations where there is change, there are examples of how urgently change is happening. On occasion, change is like slow cooking. You know it is cooking, however the time when it will be ready is measured in hours, even overnight, not minutes. There is no rush. There are no immediate expectations. In other situations, change is critically urgent!
In a time where I am being asked to talk about change, I wonder if my views of urgency are in harmony with my colleagues. There are lessons and reminders from experience which continue as wisdom whispers for anyone willing to listen, myself included.
Change takes on urgency when one or more understands the outcome of not changing. Credible threats can trigger a resolved commitment to change. When the livelihoods of 200+ people were threatened because of poor quality and high costs, there was no question in anyone’s mind that things had and would change. No external investment was required. No external experts could offer “the” solution. Change had to come from within.
Change starts with an internal transformation. One knows it will eventually touch everything. Change can lead to building something up or tearing it down. Regardless, it will be different. The direction is based on the underlying why and how. Far too often, the focus is on what. One can destroy all that is valuable in a quest to achieve the outcome (what). Life reminds me of the connection between true success and a why based on care and kindness.
At every point of transformation, there is a connection between change and one’s belief in the urgent need for change. As I listen to the psalmist, I hear urgency in his voice. “God, come close. Come quickly! Open your ears – it’s my voice you’re hearing!” (Psalm 141.1). As I look in the mirror, hear the echo of my words and actions, I often miss the same intensity and longing.
I know change is needed. I can feel the urgency and what is at risk. If not me, then who. If not now, then when.
