Untying the 'Nots' of Change Before You're Fit to be Tied

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Summary: A personal survival kit for weathering the storms of change
Review: "Untying the 'Nots' of Change" offers practical tools and strategies for weathering the storms of change at work. Patti Hathaway writes as if she is sitting in the room chatting with you. Her liberal use of very personal examples offers the reassurance that even "an expert" can have an off day and grounds her advice in real-life situations to which most everyone can relate.

The book is divided into three sections. The first focuses on increasing readers' self-awareness regarding their own reactions to the forces of change. She helps readers to recognize the stages of resistance, the related emotions that people experience when confronted with change, and how their behavior is effected.

In the second section, the focus shifts to communication and Patti provides a variety of practical strategies on topics such as "Building Trust With Your Boss," dealing with criticism,"Whining With Purpose,"and the power of forgiveness in the workplace.

In the third section, readers are challenged to examine their need for control and the impact this need has on their ability to deal with change. Patti encourages us to exercise control over the things we can, and to "let go" of what we cannot. She shows how the role we choose to play influences how much personal power we have in the face of change. The third section also focuses on stress management and encourages the reader to take an active role in mitigating the effects of stress through proactive lifestyle choices and a healthy dose of humour.

The part of the book that I most enjoyed concerned self-talk and personal use of language. Patti has learned that the language we use, both inside our heads and with those around us, has a profound impact on our state of mind and how others perceive us. The good news is that it is within our power to change, and when we do, we not only feel better, but can positively influence those around us.

In short, this book offers practical wisdom that will benefit anyone facing the storms of change. Two thumbs up!

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Summary: A Must Read For Those Undergoing Change
Review: After 19 years of working in the corporate world, I have learned that the only constant that I can count on is change. Patti Hathaway's book "Untying the `Nots' of Change Before You're Fit to Be Tied" personally gave me an arsenal of strategies to implement at work in order to handle the many changes that are continually coming my way.

I have been applying the Personal Application Ideas provided in Chapter 9 "All Stressed-Out and No Place to Go" for several months and have found that they really make a difference!

An easy read with loads of humor, you can see that Patti has a sixth sense into what really goes on in the workplace. If you work or live in an environment that is changing, this book is a must read.

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Summary: Simple, practical advice given in an entertaining manner
Review: Are you feeling stressed, scared, frustrated, worried, confused, unhappy, and/or wronged as a result of major organizational or personal change? Then this is the book for you. Patti Hathaway offers sensible and practical advice, tips and techniques for taking personal control of your change situation. Through the use of quotes, cartoons, case studies, humor and personal experiences she shows you how to move yourself into experiencing the positive side of change. Topics covered include: understanding change, evaluating your reaction to change, breaking through your own resistance to change, helping to shape the change, managing change-related stress, developing positive attitudes and taking action to move forward. "Personal Application Ideas" at the end of each chapter help make the advice immediate and useful. The emphasis is very much on what you, not others, can do to influence and control unasked for change in your life.

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Summary: Employee Centered View
Review: Change is a critical factor in today's business world. When thinking of change we often have our punch list for the technical, procedural changes such as software, SOP, job aids and references, but we neglect those that are directly impacted, our ambassadors of change, the people. This book is straight forward approach and an easy read. It is an excellent tool for those struggling to rally the troops around change. I will definitely keep this book in my collection for change implementation.

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Summary: Practical - Definitely a toolkit for dealing with change.
Review: I personally read Patti Hathaway's book "Untying the `nots' of Change" because my organization is going through a growth and changing time, including relocating our entire office to a new facility. I have a lot of employees feeling stressed about all of this change. I found her approach to be geared towards our line employees, those that are certainly affected by change, but may not directly be involved in suggesting or creating change.

This book helps to address the fears and stages that people go through when they are faced with change in the workplace and in life. We choose to either resist change and complain like an `Armchair Quarterback', or we choose to get in the game by learning how to take action on those things that we can control and put on our `Game Face' to make the best of the situation. I especially liked Chapter 7 that presented this concept and more in the `Winner's Grid' and explained how we can take control, make influence or make a graceful exit in change situations that we did not initiate. In the end, it all comes down to choice - which path an employee chooses to take to deal with change. If they are on the wrong path, then this book can help them to see change in a different light and help them gain some control over change in their workplace and their life.

I would recommend this book for your employees and managers that feel helpless and seem to be the whiners when change happens. The book provides a number of examples, plans of action, and suggestions to help deal with change.

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Summary: Illuminating, rewarding, comforting, practical reading.
Review: In Untying The 'Nots" Of Change, Patti Hathaway demonstrates that our mania with "change" is not an unqualified good, that it is often painful, stressful, debilitative, and counterproductive. Hathaway explains and illustrates how little changes at work can damage health, why the resistance of ordinary people to change contributes to costly mistakes, five valuable and important things people miss out on with their refusal to change, that nagging and whining about change can be both positive and profitable, and crucial strategies for lessening the pain and stress that inevitably accompany change. Untying The 'Nots" Of Change is both illuminating, rewarding and comforting reading for anyone who has ever had to deal with the calamities of change, or who has a managerial responsibility for implementing change in the workplace.

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Summary: Great Resource for Dealing with Change
Review: Patti Hathaway's book "Untying the `Nots' of Change" is a must read for anyone undergoing change in their life, which is probably all of us. Although the book focuses on change in the workplace, many of the ideas and suggestions can easily be applied to our personal lives as well. Patti's writing style makes this an entertaining and easy-to-read resource. I especially like how Patti weaves her personal stories into the book. Not only does she open up to her readers about successes, she also shares with us the challenges she's faced. The "Action Plan" at the end of the book is of great benefit. It causes one to reflect on their life and where they are headed in the future. This is one of the best books I've read on self-improvement.

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Summary: Great for the front lines. Practical.
Review: The reason that I like the book, "Untying the `Nots' of Change before You're Fit to Be Tied", by Patti Hathaway, so much is because it was written to approach the front line people of any organization that is going through or will be going through a change process. That is one area in which this book stands out from other change management books. Most others are written addressing managers and coaching them on how to manage change. Hathaway's book coaches employees on how to work through change.

The main point that Hathaway stresses in the beginning of the book is that an employee has the choice on how to be when change begins to affect them at work. They can either be a change victim or a change agent. Per Hathaway, "An agent is someone who produces an effect; an instrument by which a guiding intelligence achieves a result. An agent is proactive and involved in the change. A victim is a person who is adversely affected by something or someone. They wait for an event to happen and then react to it." (p. 8)

The book is separated into three sections. The first section discusses why we as employees become "Fit to be Tied" when our organization changes. In this section she goes through the cycle of resistance. She also urges each person to evaluate their reaction to change and how it impacts them professionally and personally. I liked this section because it helps the reader to go through a self-realization stage.

In the second section, Hathaway discusses communication strategies to untie the 'Nots' in organizational change. In this section you learn strategies to deal with new leadership, the importance of being coachable, the value of forgiving, and how to give critical feedback in a purposeful manner.

Section three gets into how to overcome the personal `Nots' that keep up in our resistance to change stage. In this section, Hathaway discusses how to gracefully exit and let go what you cannot control, how to take action in areas that you can control and encourage others to do the same (be a champion), plan to manage stress that comes with change, develop a positive attitude by utilizing the strategy of self-talk, and finally designing an action plan.

I personally enjoyed reading this book and agreed with Hathaway's approach to handling change in the workplace. It is not only important for management to learn to manage change, but it is also equally important if not more important for the front line people in an organization to learn to adjust to change. If they do not learn how, then they will just have to be prepared for the consequences of being left behind.

I would recommend this book to anyone that asked me about it. I would recommend it to front line employees as well as to management.

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Summary: Hats off to Patti Hathaway!
Review: There are many books available on managing change but very few approach the subject with sensitivity and openness as this book does. Although described as a "toolkit . . . for change at work" I soon realised that that is only half of the story. Perhaps a more accurate description would be "a toolkit . . . for change in life". Patti successfully blends personal experience with comment and stories from a wide variety of people in different circumstances, seasons the mix with practical techniques and presents the whole in a very readable format.

"Untying the `Nots" of Change" is divided into three sections that deal with the three major problems associated with change; understanding change and its effects on us, dealing with the external effects of change on us and how to overcome our tendency to resist change. From realising that the way you behave during the day at work will be the way you behave at night at home to forgiving those that have wronged or hurt you (in reality or perceived). Dealing with stress to developing a positive attitude, Patti has covered each aspect with the same practical approach that makes this a reference book that should be in everybody's home and office library.

This is definitely not a book to be read only when you need help with a reorganisation at work. Rather it should be read regularly to sharpen the skills that make coping with life on a day-to-day basis more enjoyable and rewarding.

After all . . . one of the few things that we can be certain of in this life, is that things will change and not all change is good.

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Summary: Change Management 101
Review: This book is about real situations and real answers, not just theory. It is an innocuous primer on organizational behavior during change. It is best for the beginner or the only book that will be read on the subject because it takes from many other sources and has helpful hints that can be utilized immediately in the workplace. It contains quotes from famous people as well as recognized experts such as Tom Peters and Tony Alessandra. It contains models to drive home concepts for those who best learn visually. It contains techniques that mirror those from Gerald L. Pepper and Edgar H. Schein.