As I’m sitting here on Friday afternoon catching my breath from a very busy week and working on my speeches for our Annual Conference for Administrative Excellence, I am reminded how change is more prevalent than ever in our lives. In the past week, I have personally been through lots of changes; my staff has gone through changes; family and good friends of mine are experiencing change; and the world is changing every day. I’m not saying they are necessarily bad changes. In fact, I have been experiencing some wonderful, good changes. The idea is . . . it’s still change.

I have been speaking on Thriving on Change or Optimizing Change for 27 years. Most of what I have said about “change” has NOT changed. I still use all the strategies I am sharing with you today and they all have worked in good times and in really horrible times.

Change is a part of life. If you do not learn to cope with it, you will be swallowed up by the wave of change. Below are specific strategies to help you cope. You may find that some strategies work better than others depending on the particular situation. Try them all. They are effective. [Read more…]