A rope walked into a bar. 
Yes that’s right… a rope.
Rope: “Bartender, get me a drink.”
Bartender: “Sorry buddy, we don’t serve ropes here.”
Discouraged, the rope slithered its way to the road. He sulked, not knowing what he could do next.
Passerby: “Hey buddy, you’re looking down. Can I help you.”
Rope: “Nah, that’s ok. Just a bad day.”
The passerby starts to walk away when the rope stops him.
“Actually, could you do me a favor? Would you mind fraying my ends a little bit?” the rope asks.
Passerby: “Uh… sure…if you say so.” He slightly frays the ropes ends.
Another passerby: “Hey, you look a little sad. Can I help you out?”
Rope: “Actually, yes you could. Do you think you could tie me in a knot?”
Passerby: “Ok… if you say so.”
Rope crawls back into the bar. “Bartender, get me a drink,” he orders.
Bartender: “HEY! Aren’t you the same rope I threw out of here yesterday!?”
Rope: “Nope… I’m A-FRAYED-KNOT!”
And the moral of the story is (drum roll please)….Change is a good thing.
Ok, perhaps we were just trying to “rope” you in on that one…but in all seriousness, companies need to start looking at their willingness and ability to adapt.
We’ve entered a world where the word “tweet” is used in the 5 o’clock news, consumer behaviors wobble back and forth, and top performing employees are looking for the next best thing.
Where are you?
Are you with the almost 60 percent of high performance organizations adept at identifying and making the necessary incremental changes or are you with the measly 35 percent of low performers without a clue?
The difference between you and the rope? You can’t afford to waste time sulking on the ground.
“In today’s ‘constant whitewater’ environment, the ability to quickly move the raft is imperative,” said Kevin Oakes, CEO of i4cp, in a recent blog.
While 75 percent of respondents to the i4cp study reported their business environment is changing or rapidly changing, only 44 percent of companies reported being adept at identifying and making incremental changes, according to a recent i4cp study and blog (http://tiny.cc/cd1y6).
Are you going to join the high performing companies recognizing changed environments and making strategic moves to adapt?
Or will you sulk with the low performers who crumple when circumstances call for change?
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