Language Advantage Inc.
When people come to Language Advantage for help learning new languages, we often tell them to resist giving in to their uneasiness and feelings of self-consciousness. We encourage them to push through their fears and self-doubts, to be willing “to try on” new experiences and different ways of looking at things.
For some time, I had wanted to take my executive language-coaching business to a new level. Finally, I decided to take the advice I so often give to my own clients who want real results: I found a qualified, experienced management consultant/executive coach to work and walk the path with me.
The experience delivered much more than I expected. One of the biggest surprises was a new perspective on what my own business does and a stinging reminder of what our clients go through as they begin to learn a new language and culture.
Involving Jo-Ann Morgante of Organizational Change Whisperers so intimately in my business forced me to step back – to examine the “view from 10,000 feet.” In the broadest sense, it helped me realize that learning is learning. We experience many of the same feelings and challenges, whether we are trying on new ways of running a business or tuning our ears to the fine points of pronunciation. The process for growth and development is the same, too. By opening our minds to change and tolerating some discomfort for a little while, we can achieve more than we ever thought possible.
Here are four key areas where Jo-Ann’s insights were both eye-opening and relevant to my own growth experience as a human being and as a leader.
Overcome your fears.
When you face new situations and need to learn new things, make a conscious decision to be patient and kind to yourself. Remind yourself—minute-by-minute if you have to—that real change takes time. People first need to stretch their thought processes and learning frameworks to become more “comfortable with discomfort.” Knowing that anxiety can be a part of trying something new—and that you will survive it—can be enough to calm the panic response that may turn on when you are trying to move forward.
Embrace progress and growth.
Staid, complacent companies often have complacent leaders who protect the status quo. They are unlikely to be their generation’s growth champions or the genius creators of technology that changes the world. Learn to tolerate those butterflies in your stomach and push past them. They could mean you’re in a growth mindset and may even be your generation’s newest, greatest trailblazer.
Take advantage of new support tools and mechanisms to drive growth.
Technology is constantly improving almost everything about operating a business, especially time management and record-keeping. By framing problems in new ways, Jo-Ann encouraged me to look in new places for solutions. Who did those new tools and processes really support? What are they designed to do? The key to maximizing the value of technology is to be constantly tying it to the lived experience in our businesses. If the connection is not directly apparent, look for something with a better fit.
Have the courage to become who you really are.
I learned to surrender to the inevitable: nothing ever goes exactly as planned. Sometimes, that is how it should be. The best change leaders are always good strategists who will rethink plans when new information emerges or the unanticipated happens. They also know to stand back when the time comes, allowing organic growth to happen and identifying any areas or challenges not being addressed or met as the business matures.
The personal guidance I received from Jo-Ann was invaluable. She kept me focused on the priorities that I had set out and the results I wanted to achieve. Most importantly and for which I am most grateful, she reminded me that I am the expert when it comes to my own business, and that it can only be successful if it honestly reflects my own ideas, values and goals.
Jo-Ann Morgante of Organizational Change Whisperers is an inspiring, metamorphic leader with a proven track record of guiding organizations through profound change and transformation.
