Agile businesses, however, that can redirect energy to fast and positive change and transformation can exploit many more opportunities than enterprises mired in resistance. The challenge for leaders today is to create an organization that is not only prepared and willing to change, but that also has enough energy and resources to succeed.
One of the rules of the First Law of Thermodynamics in physics is, "Energy can be changed from one form to another, but it cannot be created or destroyed.” I propose there is an application of this rule in business as well. If energy is being consumed on resisting changes to your business, then it is not available for making positive changes to your business.
If markets are changing due to economic conditions, competition, technological innovations or rapidly changing customer behaviors and preferences, then companies must be able to quickly redirect their energy to implementing positive change in order to win.
Change consumes energy, and energy is finite. That means in order to make changes to keep up with a rapidly changing market, energy must be conserved and stock piled so it is available. Expending scarce energy resisting intelligent change is a huge waste. Making investments and taking your business down a path that cannot quickly be undone if the market moves a new direction is also a big waste.
