I discovered decades ago that I was a bit odd. Why? Because I thrive on change. I love it. I seek it out. And as it turns out, that is atypical behaviour. For most people, change is a difficult and often painful process. One that causes angst simply by anticipating the possibility of the shift. If you are one of those people, I invite you to jump into my world for a moment and imagine the beauty of Autumn.

Autumn is all about change. Change in temperature. Change in clothing. Change in colours of the leaves. Change in school year for students. It is hands down the most beautiful season of the year. The richness of Autumn is breathtaking. If you pause for a moment, you will realize that it is actually the season of death, when all those spring buds die off. In business, we avoid ending a service, letting go of a client, firing an employee. Adjusting to change can feel like the death of what was. What Autumn does, is remind us that in this transition, the beauty and possibility of what is coming is incredible.

What is the next change that has you tense in your business? Is it replacing an employee who is causing friction? Choosing to fire a client who won’t respect your corporate values? Is it making the decision for slow growth to solidify systems so you can grow more strategically? Is it time for a brand refresh? There are so many opportunities for change in a business. What is critical to remember is that although Autumn is beautiful in it’s exuberant change, you don’t need to be quite so drastic.

Start small. At ALL Strategy, we call them ‘tweaks’. Don’t stress about changing everything. Just consider what ‘tweak’ you can make next to start inching towards your next season. Autumn has the benefit of being guaranteed Winter will follow and another Spring comes after that. Your business is a little less certain of what follows big change. So choose your critical path around what must occur, then take small steps of change and monitor the results. If the changes are moving the results in the right direction, you may be more confident to continue on the shift. If the changes are having an adverse impact, it is easier to pull back on a small ‘tweak’.

So this Autumn, as you breathe the crisp air and enjoy the beauty of changing leaves, consider what the next small tweak is going to be in your business. Change requires a change…so the time to act is now.