Cassandra Worthy - Change Enthusiasm: How to Harness the Power of Emotion for Leadership and Success

Change Enthusiasm is the book you need to read at every stage of your career... starting from the beginning! Cassandra does an amazing job of being authentic, engaging, informative, and practical with this step-by-step guide to harnessing the power of emotions. So many gems on how to be your best self and leader through any career change.

Melissa M. Proctor, chief marketing officer, Atlanta Hawks and State Farm Arena and best-selling author of From Ball Girl to CMO

Thank you, Cassandra Worthy, for providing us all with the best advice we will ever receive on how to be change enthusiasts. How to navigate through any type of change in our lives and in our careers positively. As our world pivots around us these days, so too must we. Cassandra, in her own brilliant way shares her emotional and humbling journey, and through this inspires us all to challenge ourselves for the better and to tackle the life changing things that will deliver lifelong growth and happiness. This is a must-read!

Sarah Alter, president & CEO, The Network of Executive Women

Many people will benefit from reading this book and applying the wisdom, insight, and authenticity of Cassandras journey. Her message will resonate with leaders everywhere. After serving 22 years in the military, I really hope that this book makes it into the hands of military leaders. Ive learned that, for change to happen, you must be willing to see a situation from a different perspective. Thank you, Cassandra, for being vulnerable and sharing your journey. So many will be impacted and forever changed!

Phyllis W. Newhouse, entrepreneur, retired military senior noncommissioned officer, mentor, founder and CEO of Xtreme Solutions, Inc., and founder of ShoulderUp

Copyright 2021 by Cassandra Worthy

Published in the United States by: Hay House, Inc.: www.hayhouse.com
Published in Australia by: Hay House Australia Pty. Ltd.: www.hayhouse.com.au
Published in the United Kingdom by: Hay House UK, Ltd.: www.hayhouse.co.uk
Published in India by: Hay House Publishers India: www.hayhouse.co.in

Project editor: Melody Guy Indexer: Beverlee Day

Cover design: Derek Walls Interior design: Nick C. Welch

Interior photos/illustrations: Zakiya Goggins

All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced by any mechanical, photographic, or electronic process, or in the form of a phonographic recording; nor may it be stored in a retrieval system, transmitted, or otherwise copied for public or private useother than for fair use as brief quotations embodied in articles and reviewswithout prior written permission of the publisher.

The author of this book does not dispense business advice, only offers information of a general nature to help you in your quest for business success. This book is not designed to be a definitive guide or to take the place of advice from a qualified professional, and there is no guarantee that the methods suggested in this book will be successful, owing to the risk that is involved in business of almost any kind. Thus, neither the publisher nor the author assumes liability for any losses that may be sustained by the use of the methods described in this book, and any such liability is hereby expressly disclaimed. In the event you use any of the information in this book for yourself, the author and the publisher assume no responsibility for your actions.

Cataloging-in-Publication Data is on file at the Library of Congress

Hardcover ISBN: 978-1-4019-6177-0

E-book ISBN: 978-1-4019-6178-7

Audiobook ISBN: 978-1-4019-6179-4

You can be and do anything you set your mind to in this life. My Mama

To my family, my rock, my foundation, and my love: Richard, Tishanna, Theresa, Gilbert, and Lisa.

According to McKinsey & Company, 70 percent of major change initiatives fail. But why?

Businesses small and large are going through unprecedented change as our world and those who inhabit it continue to evolve making changeand effective change responsea business imperative. Yet leading change effectively and efficiently, nurturing strong organizational resiliency, and quickly responding to market disruption or shifts in customer demand is much easier said than done.

Generally speaking, businesses exist to meet the needs of their customers and clients. Business growth is the result of change: a growth metric (profit, number of customers, market share, etc.) changing to a larger version of itself. And its in the process of that change that instability often resides, instability that can stall or thwart the desired change or growth. That instability is created through behavior. People choose how they will behave based on their beliefs. In times of high-stress change, those beliefs are often fueled by the most important tool of successful change adoption: emotion. This is where Change Enthusiasm becomes powerfully relevant.

Change Enthusiasm (noun): (1) the practice of harnessing the power of emotion to grow through change; (2) a growth mindset

Too often leaders overlook the role emotionthe natural gifts of our speciesplays in change. When going through change, we tend to hold within any negative feelings regarding the change as we interact with management, peers, and direct reports so as not to seem resistant or a troublemaker. So we are left to manage our emotions in oftentimes unproductive ways, such as venting with others at any chance we get or numbing them with excess food or alcohol. The truth of change is that it is people who make it possiblepeople and their willingness to embrace and make change a reality. The undercurrent fueling that willingness is emotion. Emotion is a powerful energy that either stirs up organizational instability and unrest through change, or fuels a cohesive and determined organization that is focused on ensuring change is adopted efficiently and sustainably. The difference is both the degree of intention and action that leaders use to acknowledge individual emotional energy as well as the tools they provide their people to harness the power of emotion to fuel growth through the change.

I wrote this book to improve the 70 percent change adoption failure rate. I wrote this book to drive meaningful change in the number of organizations getting change right, enabling the people within those organizations to truly grow through the change. This book is for my 27-year-old self when I was in the throes of a billion-dollar acquisition, a young engineer tasked with influencing culture change while struggling to go into the office every day. This book is for my 34-year-old self striving to remain sober, when I was a midlevel executive leading an organization through a complex acquisition while building her own company. This book is for yesterdays self, a full-time entrepreneur in the grind, working to grow and expand the global footprint of her consulting firm. I wrote this book for those past selves because they represent the individuals, leaders, executives, and entrepreneurs leading and experiencing change today. They represent that individual who is struggling to see any good within their changing circumstance. They represent that person looking for a ray of light in the darkness of change, transformation, transition, and disruption.

Change Enthusiast (noun): (1) one who is inspired to grow by harnessing the power of emotion; (2) one who trusts the fear, anxiety, frustration, anger, and/or grief that change brings to be signals directing them to their greatest growth opportunities; (3) one who practices Change Enthusiasm