Fatigue, we all get it. What’s amazing to me is that I feel like we are just starting to talk about it. The concept of Zoom fatigue originated during the Covid-19 pandemic and subsequently made us aware of all of the other sources of fatigue we experience. I’ll skip to the bottom line; make sure you are taking time to take care of you. I don’t just mean the occasional vacation where you end up working several hours a day; I mean take care of yourself daily.
A few weeks ago, I read an article titled “Change fatigue: When our brain’s adaptive capacity is depleted”. It got me thinking about some of the other causes of fatigue (and its less talked about sibling – depression). The article provides some insights into how to accept and overcome change fatigue. As the Greek philosopher Heraclitus said, “change is the only constant in life” – so we had better get used to dealing with it.
Is all change detrimental? No. It’s ironic but the lack of change can also bring about it’s own fatigue – people occasionally refer to the drudgery of being doing the same thing day after day (especially if it’s something that is no longer enjoyable). Even worse examples are the slips in mental cognition that happen during long periods of isolation or lack of stimulation.
Change can be overwhelming when there is no warning – the meeting you got pulled into at the last minute with no time to prepare. Change can also boost productivity by re-stimulating workers (check out the Hawthorne effect), however, if too many things change too quickly you’re right back to being over stimulated which will lead right back to fatigue.
Change management is similar to any other management process and can be broken down into the following steps:
- Prepare and initiate by telling the stakeholders what is involved and why
- Plan for the change – set goals and identify the indicators for success. Create what if scenarios using “red teams”
- Execute (or Implement in kinder terms) the plan
- Monitor the changes throughout the organization. Is there a ripple effect in other areas?
- Close or Continue. If it worked, congratulations! Did something unexpected happen? Did someone see potential for further improvements?
W. Edwards Deming and Walter Shewhart modified this process into an easy to remember cycle of: Plan, Do, Check, Act which was further modified to Plan, Do, Study, Act. This simple four step process set the stage for several project management and continual improvement methodologies.
All this change can be overwhelming, make sure you are taking time to take care of you. I don’t just mean the occasional vacation where you end up working several hours a day; I mean take care of yourself daily. I’m here to help with change management solutions, a network of people who specialize in process flow, and of course my fractional and interim management solutions.
Jack Tar Consulting 