Change Happens: Will You Laugh or Cry About It…?

Because “new beginnings” in organizations usually means change. And change comes with new uncertainties and new worries. New expectations can land like a gut punch. Combine those internal issues with current external economic concerns and that gut punch feels like a full-on gut judo kick.

This got me thinking about a job I had years ago.

I briefly worked at the deli counter in a grocery store as a kid. Not the most glamorous job, but it had one perk: Delicious rice pudding. And I got very good at sneaking a taste when no one was looking.

Until one day, right near the end of my shift, I knocked over an huge vat of it.

And that sweet, delicious pudding got everywhere. And I mean everywhere. All over the floor, seeping between the tiles. How late I would be staying after my shift to mop it up?

And as I stood there staring at it, one of the older guys I worked with came over, put his arm around me, and said:

“What are you gonna do, cry about it? No. You laugh about it.” And that stuck with me.

Years later, I realized he was basically explaining the Greek theater masks representing comedy and tragedy.

Because those masks say the same thing as he was in that moment: This is happening. And you are dealing with it. But you get to choose how you deal with it.

You can freak out and worry. Or you can embrace the chaos – and maybe even laugh your way through it.

The same is true of change.

With this team, we worked on all the things that help teams handle change better:

• How to build real connection so people feel safe speaking up. 
• How to use storytelling to inspire instead of just inform. 
• How to collaborate in a way that builds ideas instead of shutting them down. 
• And how humor plays a role in all this.

I’m not talking about the “make people laugh in a keynote” kind of humor. (Though, to be fair, my keynote did make those beverage professionals laugh) I mean the everyday kind that lowers the temperature in the room. The people can be honest about what they’re worried about — and bold enough to suggest how to fix it. The kind of humor that lets a team say, “Okay… this is a bit of a mess… but we’ve got this.”

One other thing struck me during those three days.

This was a global event. People flew in from all over the world. And it was fantastic to have everyone in the same room. The energy, the connection, and the conversations at live events can’t be matched.

But thinking about those “external economic concerns” I mentioned earlier… will companies keep doing events of this scale in the next year or two? Or will we see a shift back to pandemic era meetings, where plane tickets get replaced by Zoom links?

Because we all learned in the past few years, (2020? 2021? It’s all a bit blurry now.), meeting in person is powerful. It’s better.

…but if you have to meet on line, you can make it work. You can still connect, collaborate, and share stories. 

But when the audience is on a screen, the need for real connection gets bigger — as does the risk of people zoning out.

The same things we worked on in that room, clarity, story, presence and humor, matter even more online.

So yeah… “New Beginnings” is a great theme.

Just remember that sometimes new beginnings look a lot like a giant mess on the floor. And when they do, you’ve got a choice. Freak out…

Or grab a mop, have a laugh, and get to work. 

If helping your team do that – whether in the room or on screen – sounds useful, that’s exactly the kind of thing we work on with teams every day. 

Now if you’ll excuse me, I suddenly have a craving for rice pudding, ideally from the floor!

Pep