Fall Is Proof That Change Can Be Beautiful

On our walk this weekend, I noticed that the leaves were finally starting to change color. They seem a little late this year, but apparently nobody sent the trees the schedule. The reds, oranges, and yellows were making their appearance, and I couldn’t help admiring how beautiful everything looked.

I also felt a little sad. My gardens have been hit by frost, and I’m preparing for several months without one of my favorite activities. I love being outside, tending my flowers and admiring what’s growing. I’m considerably less enthusiastic about admiring a snowbank where my flowers used to be.

But those leaves reminded me of something I probably needed to hear: change can be beautiful, too. Even when we didn’t ask for it. Even when we would happily negotiate another six weeks of what we already have.

At work, change rarely arrives looking like a spectacular maple tree. It arrives as a new executive, unfamiliar software, a restructuring announcement, or an email containing the words “effective immediately.” How lovely. Nothing says “enjoy your morning” quite like finding out the process you finally mastered is being replaced on Monday.

We don’t have to welcome every change with enthusiasm. But we can find ways to make it feel more manageable, and perhaps even discover something worth appreciating.

1. Name what you’re actually going to miss

I’m not sad because the calendar says September. I’m sad because I’ll miss my garden. There’s a difference, and understanding it helps me figure out what I need.

The same applies at work. When a longtime executive leaves, you might miss the trust you built, the insider knowledge you shared, or knowing exactly what “Can you handle this?” meant. With someone new, that sentence could mean anything from booking lunch to reorganizing the entire department.

Before labelling yourself resistant to change, ask, “What am I worried about losing?” It might be confidence, connection, independence, or the comfort of knowing what you’re doing.

Once you name it, you can respond more usefully. Missing an established relationship suggests you need time to build a new one. Feeling less capable suggests you need practice. Neither problem is solved by telling yourself to have a better attitude.

2. Separate what you know from what you’re imagining

Our brains can turn a small announcement into a full disaster movie remarkably quickly. A new manager is coming, and before we’ve met them, we’ve mentally rewritten our job description, lost our flexibility, and decided they’ll probably schedule meetings during lunch.

Meanwhile, the actual announcement said only that a new manager is coming. We supplied the rest of the screenplay.

When change feels overwhelming, write down three things: what you know, what you’re assuming, and what you need to ask. If your organization is introducing new software, you may know the launch date. You may be assuming you’ll receive no training. Asking about training gives you something useful to do with that concern.

There may be real problems to address. But it helps to deal with the problems you have rather than exhausting yourself rehearsing every problem that could possibly arrive.

3. Find your next useful action

I cannot prevent winter from coming. I’ve considered whether complaining might help, but decades of Canadian experience have proven that my complaining about the cold does nothing except annoy everyone around me and make me feel even colder.

What I can do is prepare my garden, protect what needs protecting, and decide what needs attention before the ground freezes. Those actions don’t change the season. They help me feel ready for it.

At work, you may have little influence over the decision, but you may have some influence over your preparation. You can request a demonstration, clarify priorities, document a process, or schedule a conversation with your new executive.

Ask yourself, “What is one useful thing I can do this week?” You don’t need to understand the entire future before taking a sensible next step. Sometimes managing change begins with putting one conversation on the calendar.

4. Look for something to appreciate without pretending

I can admire the fall leaves and miss my flowers at the same time. Appreciating one doesn’t require me to stop caring about the other.

You can miss your previous executive and appreciate that your new one asks for your opinion. You can dislike learning a new system and enjoy discovering that it eliminates a report you used to build manually every Friday. Both reactions are allowed.

Try asking, “What might become easier, more interesting, or possible because of this?” You don’t need an answer immediately. Just leave room for one to emerge.

I’m still going to miss my garden. I will probably spend part of winter looking at flower catalogues and developing plans that Warren will recognize as additional work.

But on our walk, I’m glad I looked up long enough to notice the leaves. If I spend the whole season mourning my flowers, I’ll miss something beautiful happening right in front of me. At work, I want to remember to look up, too.