Happy Friday!

One thing that keeps me going is the feedback I get from clients and co-workers. If you know me in person, you know I can't take a compliment, and when I hear one, I want to run away.

People who know me really well use this against me.

When it comes to bringing about lasting change, there is a type of feedback I will look for even if I'm personally uncomfortable hearing it. That feedback goes like this, "I never want to go back to the way things were."

I bet many of you can think of times in your career where you felt this or took part in a change that created this sentiment. It's a potent message that things have changed for the better and will last for a long time.

What can be a little more interesting than just this feedback and its importance is how the road to get there is almost never the same in any given circumstance. What worked in one situation may not work in another. Someone who wants to create lasting change will do well to remember that. Far too often I see folks trying to implement what they saw at a previous job, only to see it struggle and fail.

I was catching up with a client whom I had worked with years prior, and they gave me the feedback that they'd never want things to go back to the way they were and that the change was a much bigger boon than they anticipated.

Of course, I was squirming in my seat and wanted to run.

What was interesting is that this particular change is one I'm very familiar with, and the way I helped them was unlike any other attempt I've made with any other group. I was able to help them do something that I would not have guessed worked as well as it did.

I've found that recognizing there are many paths and things to try on the way to a desired future has only helped me in getting clients where they want to be. While many clients want something that feels as complete as a recipe, flexibility is one of the characteristics to ensure success.

So, my advice to you is that if you're trying to undertake some lasting change, realize that there is almost always more than one legitimate way to go, especially the one that you personally don't think will work.

Sincerely,

Ryan