The travel metaphor is an old but still useful metaphor to use in change management. Take for instance this viewpoint. You are on a business trip for a week or so.

Before you go.

This trip requires some preparations. So you have to finish your other activities, knowing that you will take them up when you come back. This is the first moment where slack enters your program; you are not able to start a new activity and you have to finish off other work. This is not at all efficient.

The journey.

It is not hard to tell that your productivity is on its lowest when you are in between taxis, airports, gates, planes and other means of transport. Not forgetting the time you have to wait. Internet is available at airports, and you are able to reply to this single e-mail, but do not try to finish what you have started at home, because your mindset is different when you are traveling. You will win a lot when you find someone to chat with, maybe exchange some ideas or experiences, but you are not productive

The Arrival.

The business game continues, maybe in a different language, but youve got some kind of a job to do. Here you also need some warming-up time before you are really productive. Then this cycle repeats itself; you need to wrap up the job, prepare for the journey and you travel back home. There again, you need some time before you are back to work.

Adding all up.

During this trip you have been less productive. You lost time when you had to finish up before leaving, during the trip you could do hardly any work and when you came back you had a hard time starting with your daily activities. Finding a rhythm again. Now what did you gain from all this? Your gain is proportional with the slack time you encountered during your trip. All those moments when you where not productive in the sense of working on current activities. The more you were able to forget your work, the more you received in return. During a change you should try to open yourself, observe the environment and communicate with people on your way. An experience that amplifies your vision and that prepares you for new challenges.

2006 Hans Bool