7 Undeniable Reasons Why Quick Adaptation to Change is Vital at Work

Explore 7 undeniable reasons why quick adaptation to change is vital at work. Change is everywhere you turn these days. There are internal and external forces driving enterprises to implement frequent and widespread changes to their business models, their organizations and the technology supporting their business. Let’s examine the 7 undeniable reasons why quick adaptation to change is vital at work.

By Catherine Adenle

Understanding the 7 undeniable reasons why quick adaptation to change is vital at work will help you and your career. These days, constant change at work is inevitable. Most times, your career as an employee in any organization depends on how quick you are to react and adapt to change. Not knowing how best to quickly adapt to change at work will affect your career. However, having an idea of what these 7 undeniable reasons why quick adaptation to change is vital at work will help you and your career.

Regardless of the industry, or your occupation, expect that change will always happen. Technologies progress, workplace cultures advance, high standard products emerge, and market changes mean procedures and business models are modified to keep up with continuous improvements. All of these lead to change in the workplace.

Most employees prefer predictability and stability in both their professional and personal lives. Consequently, it’s normal to typically avoid situations that upset the order of things, threaten their self-interests, increase stress, or involve risks. When faced with changes to the status quo, employees usually resist initially. As people, we have a natural instinct to resist change. However, as there’s no career for life anymore, overcoming this adversity to change, as a career-minded person, will help you to be better equipped in your career to cope with constant change.

See 12 Reasons Why Employees Resist Change in the Workplace

Well, Robert F. Kennedy once said, “About twenty per cent of the people are against any change.” My findings, in the past support Kennedy’s theory. Regardless of how effective a change implementation is in any organization, it is not uncommon to find some employees challenging or even sabotaging the change. For this reason, two-thirds of organizational change management efforts fail. Employees who are blatantly outspoken in a negative manner about change are always remembered by leaders and are labelled as disruptors.

So, what benefits does being quickly adaptable to change at work bring? Here, we list seven of the best reasons why you should know how to quickly adapt to change at work.

7 Undeniable Reasons Why Quick Adaptation to Change is Vital at Work

1. Positivity

The first one of the 7 undeniable reasons why quick adaptation to change is vital at work has something to do with your mental health at work as an employee. Embracing change not only shows your employers what a model employee you are, but the positivity you bring also makes you an asset to your company. Being someone that embraces change with a positive attitude makes you an influential character which will impress co-workers and the management team.

See the Neuroscience of Change: Why it’s Difficult and What Makes it Easier

Your positive ‘can do’ attitude to change doesn’t just benefit others, it helps you too. By being positive with change means you can assess and analyze each opportunity so that you can find the right one. You become fearless and confident at work as you know that you can positively approach the challenge of change and will be looked upon as a flexible member of staff who can easily adapt. An impression like this about you is everything at work.

The positivity you bring will help you find future roles too. 72% of employers say that a positive attitude is essential when looking for new recruits.

2. Flexibility

Adapting to change is essential to your happiness and growth at work. Having an open-minded and pragmatic approach allows you to seize every opportunity that comes your way. An important part of the 7 undeniable reasons why quick adaptation to change is vital at work is the ability to readjust your mindset and reposition your thinking. By adjusting to change at work such as a new role, performing new tasks or a change in your career such as taking on a temporary position, you may discover a calling that has been previously hidden from you.

See 10 Ways Artificial Intelligence Will Change Your Career

Until you embrace a change in circumstance, you do not know what opportunities may lie ahead. Someone once said to me that until you are forced to climb the wall, you may not see the opportunities on the other side. To have career success, it is important to stay flexible so that you can find the job you enjoy and build the skills you need to get your career to where you want it to be.

See How to Cope with Change at Work

3. Skillset

Being someone that adapts to and accepts change means you can increase your skillset at a rapid rate. Every time you accept a new aspect of your role or a change in a process, you learn a new skill of how to work in accordance with your new change. Your manager notices your ability to cope and deal with change and new opportunities may come your way because of this.

Regardless of what the change is, embracing it helps to improve one key skill; your changeability. However, most changes will probably also develop a multitude of other skills for you too. In many professions, a change will require a company’s offered free training. By showing your willingness to adapt to change, you may be offered further training which is another kudos to add to your CV.

See Peoples Skills to Show Your Change-Ability

4. Leadership

A key part of the 7 undeniable reasons why quick adaptation to change is vital at work is the ability to get elevated in your role once you identify areas where you can provide a different insight during a change.

Remember that before a particular change, you may have a different view of the world and a different field of knowledge to others. If, for example, you’re more tuned in to the latest developments in Social Media or Marketing than your colleagues, don’t be afraid to show this during the change to help your manager and team to make the change a success. Equally, if you think you can improve the way something is done during the change, come up with ideas, and have the confidence to suggest and implement it. This will lead you to the promotion path.

Infographic: 7 undeniable reasons why quick adaptation to change is vital at work 

Infographic: 7 Undeniable Reasons Why Quick Adaptation to Change is Vital at Work by Catherine Adenle

See 10 Effective Ways to Manage Your Career in a Tech-Driven World

5. Self-development

Change is about learning new things, improving yourself and stepping onto a new beginning. Self-awareness and development during change will propel your career.  While a change in the workplace can help you to improve essential skills for your career, from communication to adaptability, you’ll also be able to reflect your positive attitude to change in your personal life too. You may notice that you have been stuck in a rut and as soon as you reflect on the positives that a change has brought you in the workplace, you can begin to look at how change may help your personal life.

Don’t allow yourself to accept negatives. Instead, let yourself look for changes you can make that can help to make you happier and assist you to grow as a person. By being just as diligent in your personality as you are in your professional life, you can progress and enjoy what change can bring.

6. Entrepreneurial

Entrepreneurs and inventors are known for frequent changes and constant rework in the quest to find a successful product or service. Everything takes time to develop, and a necessary change in process or product does not mean you have to give up. If entrepreneurs or inventors had given up at first sight of change, then we wouldn’t have some of the fantastic products that we have today.

By looking at change as a step to success, you develop invaluable entrepreneurship. Whether you offer solutions to a change problem or you decide to start your own business on the back of the change required, being able to see a change as an opportunity allows you to develop impressive entrepreneurial skills.

7. Innovation

Innovation is valuable in all organizations because it raises the productivity of both capital and labour. The change will allow you to use existing technology to improve processes, tasks, and products. Through change, companies can develop entirely new product categories and reshape businesses. During the change, coming up with innovative solutions to challenging problems will create significant new value that didn’t exist before for your team.

While risk assessments and prediction analysis can give us an indication of what will become, it is truly impossible to know what change can bring. Instead of allowing yourself to become anxious and stressed every time a change occurs, learn how to improvise or innovate. After all, nothing is certain. There is no point becoming anxious about the things will change. Instead, learn how to deal with the unexpected and you’ll be seen as the go-to person in a crisis. By being able to improvise efficiently, you can add value in so many ways, both at work and in your life at home.

See 10 Ways to Innovate and Impress at Work (Infographic)

Now that you have explored these 7 undeniable reasons why quick adaptation to change is vital at work, what can you add? Let’s hear from you. Add your comments below.

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