“Ask not what’s in it for me, but how can I change and improve my organisation?”
👏 Happy Friday!
On this day, November 25, 1963, President John F Kennedy’s funeral took place in Washington, DC, with over 800,000 mourners lining the streets and standing in silence. He was assassinated three days earlier, at the age of 46, while riding in an open-car motorcade with his wife and Texas Governor John Connally through the streets of downtown Dallas. John F. Kennedy was the 35th President of the United States (1961-1963). He was the youngest man elected to the office, and his administration lasted just 1,037 days. He served at the height of the Cold War, and the majority of his work as president concerned relations with the Soviet Union and Cuba. He was also a supporter of civil rights legislation and wanted to put a man on the moon by the end of the 1960s.
✅ In John F. Kennedy’s Inaugural Address, he offered the memorable injunction: “Ask not what your country can do for you, ask what you can do for your country.” As President, he set out to redeem his campaign pledge to get America moving again. His economic initiative launched the country on its longest sustained expansion since World War II, the economy experienced steady growth, low inflation, and a drop in unemployment rates. Ask not what’s in it for me.
“Ask not what’s in it for me, but how can I change and improve my organisation?”
👉 What’s In It For Me? (WIIFM): One of the first questions an employee will want to know is what is WIIFM? These questions should be treated in a positive way and should be perceived by the change team as willingness to change. The impacted stakeholder wants to know how the change will affect them, what they will gain, what they will lose, and more importantly will they still have a job?
Perhaps we should consider the flip side of WIIFM? During the COVID-19 pandemic, we experienced the Great Resignation. An unprecedented number of employees left their jobs because of job dissatisfaction. They went in search of a better work-life balance, a purpose, wanting a sense of belonging and to be shown more respect from their employers. According to job search site the Muse, nearly half (48%) of these workers said they would try to get their old job back and call it “shift shock”. In their study, 72% experienced that the new position or new company they quit their job for turned out to be “very different” from what they were led to believe. Since then, we have the new phenomena, Quiet Quitting, and the Great Regret. But what if these employees were engaged to help change and improve their organisations which then created their purpose?
Have a fantastic weekend with the ones you love and care for, enjoy some fresh air, exercise, eat drink and be happy.
Further Reading: Change Management Handbook – Leadership of Change Volume 3
Peter consults, speaks, and writes on the Leadership of Change®.
For further information please visit our websites:
Peter F Gallagher is a Change Management Global Thought Leader, Guru, Expert, International Speaker, Author and Leadership Alignment Coach.
Listed #1 by leadersHum Top 40 Change Management Gurus You Should Follow in 2022 (Mar 2022).
Ranked #1 Change Management Global Thought Leader: Top 50 Global Thought Leaders and Influencers on Change Management (2022-2021-2020) by Thinkers360.
Ranked #2 Business Strategy Global Thought Leader: Top 50 Global Thought Leaders and Influencers on Change Management (Dec 2020) by Thinkers360.
Ranked #2 Leadership Global Thought Leader: Top 50 Global Thought Leaders and Influencers on Leadership (Aug 2020) by Thinkers360.
Business Book Ranking
Change Management Behaviour - Leadership of Change® Volume 6, listed among the 50 Books from Thinkers360 Thought Leaders to read in 2022.
Change Management Adoption - Leadership of Change® Volume 5, listed among year-to-date’s (Jul 2021) most popular books on business and technology from Thinkers360 member thought leaders.
Change Management Handbook - Leadership of Change® Volume 3, listed among the 50 Business and Technology Books from Thinkers360 Thought Leaders to read in 2021.
Change Management Pocket Guide - Leadership of Change® Volume 2, ranked within the top 50 Business and Technology Books (Jan 2020) from Thinkers360 Thought Leaders.