Change Smart? Take a Pause!

You’ll probably recognise this: “We need to become more responsive for change, because we’re living in times of faster and more change. A VUCA world.” VUCA, disruption, transformation, adaptability, organisational agility, grow change capacity… we all know the words.

It’s a story we keep telling ourselves, because we feel the urgency – as organisations, leaders and change professionals. But… is that really the whole story?

I’ll admit, I often start my keynotes this way too. I talk about the importance of being able to adapt, about how the ‘future state’ does not exist and how we need to learn to embrace continuous transition. There are many real-life examples that support that message. I shared one in my previous blogs: The Future State Does Not Exist.

Yes, the world around us is changing. Expectations are shifting. And internally, we often realise we’re not yet performing in a way that will help us reach our future goals. So we adjust the strategy. One change follows another, sometimes without leaving space to breathe.

And when we start noticing that the organisation is reaching its limits – when we realise we’re trying to push through too many changes at once, and people are losing enthusiasm for yet another new initiative – we try to manage the change portfolio more effectively. But honestly? That rarely means doing less or slowing down. It’s usually about reshuffling and re-prioritising, the pace and volume more or less stay the same.

And although I believe we can grow organisational change capability and change resilience, I also find myself wondering: Are we also doing this a little bit to ourselves?

We rarely allow the organisation – and our people – moments of pause. And that’s a risk. Without time to consolidate, reflect, and anchor change, things could remain on the surface. The risk of change fatigue increases, and adoption drops. And that affects not only the transformation itself, but also the everyday work that needs to continue in the meantime.

How much motivation and capacity can you keep expecting from people, if you’re constantly asking them to go to the limit and the experience of change becomes negative? Change isn’t just about starting something new. It’s also about embedding it, making it part of who we are and what we do. And that also requires pause. Pause means creating space to regain control (autonomy), to (become and) feel competent, connected, and successful. Some basic needs for a successful team.

So I wonder…

• Do we dare to build in pause as part of our strategy?

• How do we recognise the moments that call for a pause?

• Can we find the balance between responsiveness and rest?

• Can we use pause to focus on what is really important for the future?

Because here’s the reality: the pace of transformation is only speeding up. Organisations cannot afford to slow down. But a pause is not about doing less or stopping change – it’s about creating the clarity to focus on smart transformation.

Too many change initiatives are driven by yesterday’s problems. They consume huge amounts of energy, but don’t necessarily prepare the organisation for what’s ahead. To survive and thrive, we need to look further – into the unknown and uncertainty of the day after tomorrow – and focus our change energy there.

So… take a pause. Not to change less. But to ask the essential question: Are we improving yesterday’s work, or are we preparing for the day after tomorrow?

Because without that pause, we risk exhausting ourselves on the wrong changes. With it, we give ourselves the chance to choose the transformations that will truly shape the future.