Chris Mason is an experienced business leader and owner and director of several companies ranging in size from 12 to 800 employees. He has authored two books, Value To Others (2017) and Change Success (2019), and is a member of the American Psychological Association. His extensive research into Industrial and Organizational Psychology, in which he has a PhD, has allowed him to glean new insights into change management and a new change success theory. He joins Jared Siegel today to discuss his research and how it can be applied.

Tune in here, at delapcpa.com/podcast, or wherever you listen to podcasts:

Here are a few highlights from Jared's conversation with Chris Mason:

• Chris credits his success to his dedication to providing value for people and educating himself. “[A PhD] is not what makes you educated,” he remarks. “What makes you educated is the problems and opportunities you deal with on a daily basis… the problem I help people solve every day is what makes me a reasonable operator, combined with my experience.”
• In the past 50 years, no new thinking in management has appeared, according to Chris. Pre-existent models were just shuffled around. Additionally, research shows there is a 70% probability of failure every time you try to do something new. Successful change is dependent on three variables, Chris says, which are readiness, capability, and belief system. The average firm is not successful with change initiatives because they lack one or more of these variables.
• Jared likens resistance to change to the force of inertia in a car. “One of the first things you learn as a driver is to be careful where you look because that’s where you’ll end up,” Chris says. “If you keep staring at the fence you’ll drive into the fence.” He talks about the importance of focus and trusting your abilities.
• Real learning comes from doing. Coaching gives you the confidence that brings you to the start line, but to move forward you have to take a step. Chris shares the five steps to change readiness and three factors that influence belief systems as a variable for successful change.
• Chris shares advice from a method of therapy that can be applied to business. “Whatever is working, do more of it. Whatever’s not working, stop doing it and try something completely different.”