It may sound so paradoxical, but success can be an enemy of change.
Yahoo once dominated the online space but failed to see that search is the future. It just didn’t take enough risks when they had the opportunity to buy Google in 2002 and Facebook in 2006.
Nokia was not interested to overhaul the user experience when the wave of internet-enabled smartphones came. It failed to understand that the data was the future of communication.
Xerox actually invented the first PC but never bothered to take the risk of disrupting their existing business model with digital.
Blockbuster – the giant video rental company – went bankrupt because they refused to change the user experience while a start-up named Netflix disrupted the delivery mechanism of the business.
Kodak filed for bankruptcy in 2012 despite developing the world’s first consumer digital camera as it refused to transform its film business and embrace the digital revolution.
These stories are now business folklore – companies that focused too heavily on what they did well and missed the next big wave. They eventually failed to change and went into oblivion.
BUT FIGHTING THE FEAR of CHANGE is not only applicable for big companies or businesses. It is true for everything that we do.
Running campaigns with a set of strategies that delivered decent results but too afraid to try newer strategies. Creating reports using the same framework months after months that was once appreciated by the customer. Writing blogs exactly the same way that once performed so well. Developing user experiences exactly the same way because users once loved it!
I have SUFFERED a lot from this resistance to change actually.
And I still continue to struggle. But one good thing is that I am now aware of the pitfalls of failing to take risks.
Whenever I feel the lack of energy to take some risks and try new things, I try to engage with myself.
?️ This is working well right now but we need to do better.
?️ If we don’t find new ways to reach and delight our customers, then others will do it for us.
?️ There is a risk in innovating but there is a bigger risk in standing still.
?️ What our competitors doing innovatively that caused us some opportunities.
?️ What did we do things differently that helped us win new businesses?
I know that many of us face this issue. I am curious to know how you fight the resistance to disrupt your processes/business/habits for betterment.
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