Beliefs, change and transformation (1)

For a man to achieve all that is demanded of him, he must regard himself greater than he is” (Johann Goethe).

Transformational leadership is no doubt the current byword for visionary and inspirational leadership. The reasons are not far-fetched, because the essence of leadership is rapid forward movement, and transformational leadership is all about the leader identifying the need, time, space, process and strategy for positive change. Transformational leadership in this regard is expressed through the power of belief, which inspires the creation of leadership vision, shared and executed through personal conviction, commitment and consistency.

Within the organisational setting and environment, transformational leaders would usually compel sweeping changes in both corporate culture and the mindset of individual team members, as they facilitate their capacity to embrace and master change. That is what makes transformational leaders successful at articulating a vision of change that their followers can identify with. The result is that such organisations also become transformational, as the employees become change agents like their leader(s).

It is this ability to adapt to necessary change, and importantly use the change as leverage in accessing new opportunities in the marketplace that generally determine whether an organisation will survive, thrive or go out of business during tough and challenging times. The transformational leadership style does not allow an organisation to approach necessary change with over the top cautiousness or by ignoring it.

Rather, it presents such changes as opportunities for real investment by the leader and the team in the future growth and development of the organisation. The belief that is created in this way is what engages the commitment of the individual team members and enables them to embrace change more easily. This should be the greatest desire of team leaders and must be the ultimate goal in change management processes.

Transformation is of course the bridging of two words: trans (movement) and formation (emergence). Transformation in this regard describes the power and process of radical or complete change. The truth is that we can all be radical in our approach to bring about any change that we want, or which we find necessary. It all boils down to the level of belief and inspired thoughts that can be generated within our internal (mind) resources to make the desired change so compelling that nothing short of its achievement would be tolerable.

In the process of coaching, a client is especially supported, challenged and motivated by an experienced coach to achieve higher levels of self awareness about his ability and responsibility to bring about desired changes. It is this increase in self knowledge or awareness that often creates the energy and passion to drive positive transformation.

As a matter of fact, every one of us can drive transformation in our lives, careers, family, health, relationships, business, etc by seeking improvements, better quality and enhanced experiences in these areas. This would be by seeking something more enriching, more satisfying and more sustainable through the changes that we facilitate.

To facilitate change, all that we need to do is alter our frames of mind about what we term meaning. Meaning is a technical term that refers to the interpretation that is given to a thing, place, person, event or situation, based on experiential knowledge. This creates a mind frame that becomes entrenched in both our consciousness and sub consciousness. The mind frame in turn determines our thoughts, beliefs, values, understanding, attitudes, and to a large extent, our reality.

Change is therefore always possible, as long as frames of mind and life maps can be appropriately and effectively altered. In this regard a superior mind frame is required to replace that which had previously been entrenched over time. That alteration is what gives rise to personal transformation. That is what demands our actions in being more conscious and intentional about the changes that we desire and can bring about.

Anything that truly facilitates a rich transformation of mind and emotion would bring us to the point of change. These are the things that alter our thinking, representations, beliefs, understanding, behaviours, remembrance, perceptions, imagination, etc. All these will influence our transformation or the lack of it because what is formed in the inside of our minds brings about the evident change in form and action.

The truth is that it is more desirable and beneficial for us to able to anticipate and proactively respond to changes. It is in fact more profiting and useful to be able to effect desired changes around us and concerning that which affects us. In this way we are better equipped to ensure that the changes around us are programmed to benefit us and not limit us. That is the value that belief in positive change and transformation offers.

And that is why several people today are more interested than ever before in engaging in one form of coaching or the other. People simply want to bring desired changes to their lives, organisations, business, leadership potentials, ambitions etc. This is because of the belief and knowledge that these are requirements that will enable to cope better with present and future challenges. You can read more about the transformational power of coaching at www.ceedcoaching.com.

Emmanuel Imevbere