How to Change Things -- And Yourself

I am not one to get all gushy about business books. I read a lot of them on a nearly one-a-week basis because of my podcast interviews with the American Marketing Association. However, I am so pleased to be reading Switch: How to Change Things When Change Is Hard. This is the second book by co-authors and brother writing team Chip and Dan Heath.

Their first book, Made to Stick, was a New York Times bestseller and is a must-read for any communicator of any type -- period.

Okay, so for the gushing...

I am a whole 24 pages into this book and it appears to be another must read. Within the first chapter I've already learned about three surprising elements of change and how to apply them to my advantage.

1. What looks like resistance is often due to a lack of clarity.
2. What looks like laziness is often exhaustion.
3. What looks like a people problem is often a situation problem.

I'll admit, I was surprised at the admittedly simple description of why change fails so often, but equally excited at the opportunity to unlock these ideas in my own work life. And what's even better is that next week I'll be interviewing Chip and Dan about their new book -- the podcast will be posted soon after.

If you have questions you'd like me to ask Chip or Dan, let me know. I'll be happy to include what I can in the podcast interview.

-- David Kinard, PCM