Written by: Eric Basye on April 14, 2023

William Bridges, author of Managing Transitions, was an expert on change who helped thousands of leaders and organizations understand and thrive in seasons of transition. Susan Bridges co-authored the book, a consultant with the William Bridges Associates, who later became his wife. Managing Transitions provides practical guidance and strategies that benefit organizations and individuals experiencing transitioning. Believing that no one transition was the same, Bridges identified three phases of every transition: the ending, neutral zone, and new beginnings.

[1]

Bridges also provides a helpful diagram of the life cycle of an organization. The seven stages are: Dreaming the dream, launching the venture, getting organized, making it, becoming an institution, closing in, and dying.

[2]

Last fall, as I was in a significant transition of my own, Dr. Clark suggested I read this book as he had found it helpful during his transition out of pastoral ministry from the church he had planted. Thankfully, I had planned for a nine-month succession to ensure a healthy transition for our staff, donors, and the Board as they began the search process for a new Executive Director. For those nine months, I experienced many emotions ranging from self-doubt to frustration to sadness and grief and hopeful expectation. As I began to process my transition, as well as support my staff and Board, there were three concepts from the book that particularly stood out to me:

• Endings are Necessary, and they require letting go! The author states,

Before you can begin something new, you have to end what used to be. Before you can learn a new way of doing things, you have to unlearn the old way. Before you can become a different kind of person, you must let go of your old identity. Beginnings depend on endings. The problem is, people don’t like endings.[3]

• Except and Accept Signs of Grieving, so rest easy, the range of experienced emotions is all part of the process. Bridges writes, “When endings take place, people get angry, sad, frightened, depressed, and confused.”[4] Additionally, “Denial is a natural first stage in the grieving process, a way in which hurt people protect themselves from the first impact of loss.”[5]
• As a leader, one of the most important things I could do for my staff was to “normalize the neutral zone. The author states,
  • One of the most difficult aspects of the neutral zone is that most people don’t understand it.
  • The neutral zone is like the wilderness through which Moses led his people.
  • The neutral zone is not the wasted time of meaningless waiting and confusion that it sometimes seems to be.[6]

Having completed the book in the fall, in October, I set aside time in our monthly all-staff meeting to work through our transition. Following are the cliff notes of this meeting which proved to be incredibly impactful, emotional, and healing for my staff and me. It was one of the few times I fully wept before my team as I expressed my grief and sadness in thinking about the transition before us. Here it is:

Topic: TRANSITIONS

• Previous teaching: JOY
• In the last number of months, we all have experienced a lot of change! And while we have some great news (and direction) going forward, we are in a season of transition.

Take a few moments to reflect on the following and discuss them at your tables:

• What has been most challenging for you regarding CLDI changes these past few months?
• In what ways is change a challenge to you?
• In what ways is change exciting?

• The reality is that change is an inevitable reality of our fast-moving world. Yet, we would be amiss to ignore the realities of change and how it affects us as individuals and an organization.
  • Let us recount the story of Moses and Joshua. If you recall, Moses was not permitted to enter the Promise Land for not trusting the Lord and out of anger and pride striking the rock for water (Numbers 20:8-12). God reminds him of this again in Deut. 32:54 (“you did not treat Me as holy”).
  • Therefore, God appointed a new leader to take the people into the Promise Land – “Then He commissioned Joshua the son of Nun, and said, ‘Be strong and courageous, for you shall bring the sons of Israel into the land which I swore to them, and I will be with you’” (Deut. 31:23).
  • What strikes me about this story is that God is the author of it all. Just as the Lord called Moses to lead His people out of slavery, so also did He appoint Joshua to lead His people into the Promise Land.

• I mention this passage not to say that I am Moses and Kaleb is Joshua. Yet, I believe there are some lessons we can learn from this transition.
  • Change is real.
  • Change involves loss.
  • Change can also be a season of excitement and reinvigoration. On that note,
    • Resilient leaders are those who practice the art of reframing. Tod Bolsinger writes, “leadership is not finding a new inspiring vision but _reframing_ an original or enduring vision of the organization that allows everyone to see a new, compelling future for their beloved organization that is worth sacrifice and commitment.” (Resilient Leadership, 174) Reframing requires leaders that are self-differentiated, able to step outside the mindset of “this is how it has always been done” to envision new potential and solutions to further develop and fulfill the organization’s mission.

• As we look to the future of CLDI in the months to come,
  • What is most exciting?
  • What is most nerve-wracking?
  • What can we (as the leadership) do to ensure a healthy transition?

• Pray

[1] William Bridges and Susan Mitchell Bridges, Managing Transitions: Making the Most of Change, 4th edition. (Boston, MA: Da Capo Lifelong Books, A Member of the Perseus Books Group, 2016), 5.

[2] Ibid., 89.

[3] Ibid., 27.

[4] Ibid., 32.

[5] Ibid., 33.

[6] Ibid., 49.

About the Author

Eric Basye

Disciple, husband, and father, committed to seeking shalom.

• Link