Change is good.

Maybe you have a new supervisor. Perhaps your company is implementing new software. Or possibly you have been transferred or a new management company took over your community. What each of these situations has in common is change.

The fact that change is frightening isn't surprising, but change can be a great thing--it can make you and your company more successful than ever.

Not convinced? Consider these stories of change.

America's lettuce growers were losing money at a staggering rate. Their solution: change their major product to a prepared salad in a bag. Salad in a bag has become a $1.7 billion business in only seven years, rescuing the lettuce growers.

Apple Computer Inc., the company that created iPod, wasn't satisfied with being just another creator of MP3 players, so it created iTunes, an online music store. Nearly 1 billion songs have been sold on iTunes to date. Apple now sells more than 70 percent of legally downloaded music.

Failure to recognize the need for change can open the door for a competitor. Sports Illustrated failed to view itself as anything other than a print magazine, which allowed its largest competitor, ESPN, to rule the world of sports television. If Sports Illustrated had viewed itself as a sports media company, ESPN many have never gotten its foot in the door.

See, Feel, Change

To successfully promote change in any organization, leaders must create an environment conducive to change through a simple three-step approach.

Step 1: See. Show why change is needed. Perhaps it is to increase efficiency or to cut costs. Whatever the mason, it is necessary to convey the "why" of the change, which keeps staff from speculating and fearing the worst.

Step 2: Feel. Minimize staff members' negative feelings while creating in them a sense of ownership. Show how important their roles are in not only creating the change, but in ensuring its success.

Stop 3: Change. Emotionally charged ideas change behavior, enabling the change process.

A Case Study in Change

CAPREIT, a Maryland-based REIT with communities in 15 states, successfully created change in its organization with its "Pre-Loved Carpeting" program.

Acknowledging that carpeting was the largest expense at its apartment communities, CAPREIT devised a program in which apartments were leased with "used carpeting" that had minor imperfections. CAPREIT was asking its leasing professionals to make a huge change: to lease apartments with less-than-perfect carpeting.

How did CAPREIT do it?

Step 1: See. CAPREIT showed its team the cost of carpet replacement and how it significantly affected the community's budget.

Step 2: Feel. CAPREIT realized that it needed buy-in from all associates, particularly the leasing professionals, so the company established a training program.

Step 3: Change. CAPREIT taught its team to lease these apartments by taking a more value-based approach to the leasing presentation and by increasing the rents on apartments with new carpeting by $25 per month. The company-wide training program reinforced the importance of maintaining the value of the CAPREIT asset.

The year that the program debuted, CAPREIT reduced carpet replacement costs by 18.4 percent without any noticeable reduction in closing percentages.

Remember, if you keep doing it the way you've always done it, you'll get what you've always gotten.

30 Days of Dedication

working through change is different for everyone, but there are two key strategies to surviving personal or professional change.

1. Stay focused on the positive outcomes of the change. Don't dwell on what might happen. Maintain a positive attitude and "keep your eyes on the prize."

2. Stick with the program. Experts say it takes at least 30 days to form a new habit. Give your change program 30 days--probably more.

Lisa Trosien has more than 20 years of industry experience. She can be reached at [e-mail].