I truly enjoyed reading the articles on adaptability and change. I think that change is one of the hardest things that many people face in life as we enjoy our comfort zone and hate to leave it. One job that I have held has been as a County Extension Agent for WVU and the role of a County Extension Agent is to serve as a "change agent" in their communities. The Smith Lever Act formalized extension education in 1914 in a partnership with USDA and the land-grant universities. The goal was to being University research and education to rural communities and introduce change that could benefit these undeserved areas. This was during a time when 30% of population had a direct link to the farm, today less than 2% of the population has a direct link. Today The Cooperative Extension Service has a presence in every State and County in the Nation.
The look may have changed, but the of role Extension has changed little over the last 100 years, it maintains three distinct focus areas Research, Education and Service. Extension Agents not only focus on Agriculture and Natural Resources, but Rural and Economic Development, Youth Development and Family Health and Nutrition. The Extension Service has a proven track record on bring change and education to rural areas. The reason being is the county agent is a trusted change agent who lives and works in their communities and bring proven University research backed projects and educational programs that directly benefit the people living in their area.
I know that with all my years in State Government, change impacts people in many ways, some embrace it and some run from it. One of the articles had the statement "Change brings change". We can either learn to acknowledge it and embrace change or get stuck with our unwillingness to change. We all know that person who we interact on a regular basis who stays continually upset becasue everything changes and they hate all of it.
I do not not always comfortably think of myself as a leader in my current position. I have always instead considered that I am serving as a change agent. Mostly because I am changing the way a lot of folks in our Agency do business. I think that as part of the Emerging Leaders Program we all have been given the ability to work as a change agent in our Agency and bring positive change. The following list outlines the 5 Characteristics of strong change agents, which also look to me pretty similar to what a strong leader also looks like.
I found this on a blog called the Principal of Change, which relates to innovation in schools, but I think that it pertains to the ability to make changes at all levels of government.
1. Clear Vision
– A “change agent” does not have to be the person
in authority, but they do however have to have a clear vision and be
able to communicate that clearly with others. Where people can be
frustrated is if they feel that someone is all over the place
on what they see as important and tend to change their vision often.
This will scare away others as they are not sure when they are on a
sinking ship and start to looking for ways out. It is essential to note
that a clear vision does not mean that there is one way to do things;
in fact, it is essential to tap into the strengths of the people you
work with and help them see that there are many ways to work toward a
common purpose.
2. Patient yet persistent – Change does not happen
overnight and most people know that. To have sustainable change that is
meaningful to people, it is something that they will have to
embrace and see importance. Most people need to experience something
before they really understand that, and that is especially true in
schools. With that being said, many can get frustrated that change does
not happen fast enough and they tend to push people further away from
the vision, then closer. The persistence comes in that you will take
opportunities to help people get a step closer often when they are
ready, not just giving up on them after the first try. I have said
continuously that schools have to move people from their point ‘A’ to their point ‘B’, not
have everyone move at the same pace. Every step forward is a step
closer to a goal; change agents just help to make sure that people are
moving ahead.
3. Asks tough questions – It would be easy for
someone to come in and tell you how things should be, but again that is
someone else’s solution. When that solution is someone else’s, there is
no accountability to see it through. It is when people feel an
emotional connection to something is when they will truly move ahead.
Asking questions focusing on, “What is best for kids?”, and helping
people come to their own conclusions based on their experience is when
you will see people have ownership in what they are doing. Keep asking
questions to help people think, don’t alleviate that by telling them
what to do.
4. Knowledgeable and leads by example – Stephen Covey talked about the notion that leaders have “character and credibility”; they
are not just seen as good people but that they are also knowledgeable
in what they are speaking about. Too many times, educators feel like
their administrators have “lost touch” with what is happening in the
classroom, and many times they are right. Someone who stays active in
not necessarily teaching, but active in learning and working with
learners and can show by example what learning can look like now will
have much more credibility with others. If you want to create “change”,
you have to not only be able to articulate what that looks like, but show it
to others. I have sat frustrated often listening to many talk about
“how kids learn today” but upon closer look, the same speakers do not
put themselves in the situation where they are actually immersing
themselves in that type of learning. How can you really know how “kids
learn” or if something works if you have never experienced it?
5. Strong relationships built on trust – All of the above, means nothing if you do not have solid relationships with the people that you serve. People will not want to grow if they do not trust the person that is pushing the change. The change agents I have seen are extremely approachable and reliable.
You should never be afraid to approach that individual based on their
“authority” and usually they will go out of their way to connect with you.
I think these characteristics are being strengthened by what we are learning each week in our classes and discussion, but is also a reflection on the importance of adaptability and leadership. I would love to hear your thoughts on this concept.
link to the blog - http://georgecouros.ca/blog/
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