The basis of any change effort is very simple. Beating the status quo always involves the simple formula:
When you are faced with the need to change,
you can either do things differently or
you can do a different thing.
I call it Thing One & Thing Two. My clients are encouraged to use this as an anchor as they talk through the process of creating new realities for their organizations. When we reach a decision, I ask, “Does that represent a different thing, or a thing done differently?” The answer helps to further clarify the new idea. It also helps implement new ideas because the question contains a necessary hook to the past, known as a Change Buffer.
In a recent New York Times opinion piece, journalist Tom Brokaw broaches a controversy by suggesting there could be millions and millions of dollars saved if small local government offices would combine their efforts across municipal, county and even state boundaries.
Having lived for years in a small Wyoming town, I see great wisdom in Brokaw’s idea.
My question to you is this:
Would doing this be Thing One or Thing Two?
