Dealing with change. Minsan (dating sa iyo, nawala o nadagdagan)

Change. We face it regularly and more frequently now at all levels, professionally, governance, personally.


I recall while working for the leading beverage company the various changes that we face monthly, quarterly and the major ones annually. Politically, we face drastic changes daily.  We get devastated on a personal level with loss of friends, loved ones, properties, artifacts, pets or even gadgets.

Without grit, we get disillusioned and desperate. What helped in coping with change was the understanding and acknowledgement of Kurt Lewin’s change model.

Kurt Lewin’s model involves three steps: Unfreezing, Changing and Refreezing . . .  "The process of change entails creating the perception that a change is needed, then moving toward the new, desired level of behavior and finally, solidifying that new behavior as the norm."

Paraphrasing managing change, help let go of the past and prepare for the future. What will change? What will remain the same? What is the new beginning?


Some proven steps for me which have been helpful in transitioning to change: Prepare for the change. Acknowledge change openly. Compensate for the loss. Take a part of the old. Say info over and over. Elaborate on the ending. Mark endings-show how it ensures continuity. Treat the past with respect.

"Iba ang ang mga bossing ngayon. Mababawasan na/Madaragdagan na . . . Nandoon pa rin ang . . . Nandito pa rin tayo. Pero malamang hanggang sa katapusan na lang. Kita kita na lang tayo." "Bilog ang bola." Winter, spring, sumner and fall. When a door is closed, another one opens."

Ely Buendia’s “Minsan” translates the dynamics well in a song particularly in treating the past with respect:

“Minsan tayo ay naging tunay na magkaibigan
minsan ay hindi ko na alam ang nangyayari kahit na anong gawin lahat ng bagay ay merong hangganan
ngunit ngayon tayo ay nilimot ng kahapon di na mapipilitang buhayin ang ating pinagsamahan
ngunit kung sakaling mapadaan baka ikaw ay aking tawagan
dahil minsan tayo ay naging tunay na magkaibigan”

Changes are evidently happening progressively now. Unfreeze (picture the ending). Change (which is inevitable). Refreeze (move on with a new beginning).