Think of any change related project which you have been involved in and you will be able to appreciate the clear path between the starting point and the end point. This is just how we remember things.
The reality of it is that hindsight prefers a distorted view of events. During the change itself the path is not so linear, involving various changes in direction as a result of new found information, changing perceptions or other feedback gathered during the process of change
This has recently frustrated me with a project I have been engaged with, which had a clear pathway along which progress was being made with slight deviations and modifications being made along the way, but nothing substantial or at least this is how I envisaged things would progress. Late in the year however it was decided to back away from the project and deliver a smaller pilot version of the original plan. My initial reaction to this was to be disappointed and a little bit annoyed if I am being honest. This move to a smaller pilot project represented a more significant change in direction and pace than anything I had considered. It presented a significant deviation from the envisaged plan.
Looking back now, having distanced myself from my immediate emotions in relation to the project, I can now see that this big change in direction is just a factor of change and therefore should not be viewed as necessarily negative in context. The direction of travel is still the same albeit the route is not as straight as I had originally thought it would be.
As such I will continue on with the now smaller project, as part of the project towards an ultimately planned more holistic implementation. This recent change is not a set back back a small step on the journey towards the eventual goal of the project.
Technology and Learning