Robert Jacobs - Leverage Change

LEVERAGE CHANGE

OTHER BOOKS BY ROBERT W. JAKE JACOBS

Real Time Strategic Change
You Dont Have to Do It Alone

8 WAYS TO ACHIEVE FASTER, EASIER, BETTER RESULTS

ROBERT W. JAKE JACOBS

Leverage Change

Copyright 2021 by Robert W. Jake Jacobs

All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, distributed, or transmitted in any form or by any means, including photocopying, recording, or other electronic or mechanical methods, without the prior written permission of the publisher, except in the case of brief quotations embodied in critical reviews and certain other noncommercial uses permitted by copyright law. For permission requests, write to the publisher, addressed Attention: Permissions Coordinator, at the address below.

Ordering information for print editions

Quantity sales. Special discounts are available on quantity purchases by corporations, associations, and others. For details, contact the Special Sales Department at the Berrett-Koehler address above.

Individual sales. Berrett-Koehler publications are available through most bookstores. They can also be ordered directly from Berrett-Koehler: Tel: (800) 929-2929; Fax: (802) 864-7626; www.bkconnection.com

Orders for college textbook/course adoption use. Please contact Berrett-Koehler: Tel: (800) 929-2929; Fax: (802) 864-7626.

Distributed to the U.S. trade and internationally by Penguin Random House Publisher Services.

Berrett-Koehler and the BK logo are registered trademarks of Berrett-Koehler Publishers, Inc.

First Edition
Paperback print edition ISBN 978-1-5230-9224-6
PDF e-book ISBN 978-1-5230-9225-3
IDPF e-book ISBN 978-1-5230-9226-0
Digital audio ISBN 978-1-5230-9227-7

2021-1

Production manager: Susan Geraghty; Cover design: Rob Johnson, Toprotype, Inc.; Interior design, illustrations, and composition: Westchester Publishing Services; Copyeditor: Michele D. Jones; Proofreader: Cathy Mallon; Indexer: Carolyn Thibault; Author photo: Michael Nemeth

To Mom, from whom I learned the importance of helping others.
To Dad, who taught me that optimism can be a way of life.

T he purpose of Leverage Change is to make great things happen with change for individuals, teams, and organizations. Youll do this by seeing your work with a fresh lens. I call it Leverage Change. It is a new kind of change, one where using leverage will result in greater returns with fewer problems on your part. There are three ways to win with the levers. Each makes using leverage valuable with any change work, any time, any place made by anyone.

The first way to use the levers is to improve the approach youre already using. Stories in the following pages describe the levers being applied to large and small changes, simple or complex projects, newly launched efforts or those an organization has been tackling for some time. Each of these kinds of situations provides an excellent opportunity to use the levers to enhance your work.

Apply these levers, and youll accelerate and sustain any and all change work you are doing. Theres no need to radically change course, no requirement to stop doing what youve been doing. Just supplement your current work with some or all of these eight tried-and-true strategies, and you too can find your way to a world of faster, easier, better results. The 8 Levers are the counterargument to the one-best-way school of thought. They are designed to play well with others.

Currently, change methods vie for attention and a loyal following. There need be no debate about whether your current approach or the 8 Levers are a smarter path for you to pursue. The answer to this question is a resounding yes! Stay on the trusted path youve been traveling. Add the levers to the work you already have under way and make even more progress. Find a place where your projects and initiatives will benefit from greater speed, ease, and effectiveness, and youve found a home for the levers.

The second way you can use the 8 Levers is to apply them to achieve organization-wide change without a formal effort by applying one lever. As soon as you use a lever, change begins. Automatically, you begin the journey toward your preferred future. Choose to apply a lever sitting alone in your office, in conversation with a colleague, or in a team meeting. Use one or more of the levers to guide your thinking or your approach to a situation. Pay attention as they point you toward a small, strategic action. Watch how leverage starts moving you closer to your desired results.

Think of the 8 Levers as having a coach running alongside you as you make your way through a marathon. Open your mind to adapting how you compete in the race. Add a few straightforward strategies that lead to your running faster and better for the rest of the race, similar to adding a lever or two to your current work. No need to lose momentum or take time off the course to learn a whole newfangled way to run. Keep steaming along but with leverage, small adjustments leading to big changes. Move your arms a bit less. Lean forward as you follow the runner in front of you. In this case, doing lessbut the right bit of lessimproves your performance. In the case of the 8 Levers, smart changes in thought and action lead to big improvements in accomplishing the results you are seeking.

A third way to use the levers is to improve your own work, however you define it. If youre interested in getting a job done faster, more easily, and better, the levers can help you on that journey. Because the levers are scalable, what works for an organization or team can work for you too. Whether you are in the C suite or on the front line, you have tasks you need to complete. You can do them more efficiently and effectively by bringing the levers to bear on the work at hand. Know what success looks like, define the work needed to get there, apply the levers, and reap the benefits.

This book is for CEOs, business unit leaders, functional heads, supervisors, and anyone leading a team or wanting to make changes in their own work.

Internal and external consultants and coaches charged with supporting these leaders in making change happen will also benefit from Leverage Change. Readers should also include trainers and educators focused on better ways to change.