Looking back, one of the biggest mistakes I made early in my career was believing that if I could just explain the vision clearly enough, work hard enough, and care deeply enough, I could change an entire system.
I couldn’t.
In fact, I nearly burnt myself out trying. And stepping into a new space where I had even less authority or influence years later resulted in the same mistakes.
Working in the care experience space, you quickly realise that change isn’t difficult because people don’t care. It’s difficult because care, health, education, housing, and social work are complex systems in themselves. And for our young people they are have to work together to get the best outcomes. Every process connects to another. Every change affects multiple teams. Everyone is already busy trying to do the best they can with limited time and resources.
For a long time, I approached change like it was a mountain to climb in a single push.
The harder I pushed, the harder the system seemed to push back.
Over time, I’ve learnt that meaningful transformation looks very different.
It isn’t about one heroic leader changing everything.
It’s about lots of people making lots of small improvements that eventually reshape the whole system.
The power of small wins
One of the concepts that appears repeatedly in organisational psychology is the idea of small wins. Research by Karl Weick and others suggests that breaking large challenges into achievable pieces creates momentum, builds confidence and helps people believe that bigger change is actually possible.
I’ve seen this happen time and time again.
Instead of asking:
“How do we transform the whole journey?”
Ask:
“What’s the one thing we could improve this month that would genuinely make life easier for colleagues and better for children?”
Deliver that.
Learn from it.
Celebrate it.
Then build the next improvement.
Momentum is contagious.
Find your allies
One lesson I wish I’d learnt much earlier is that change is never a solo activity.
Every successful improvement project I’ve been involved with has had champions across different professions.
The nurse who sees a better way.
The social worker who knows where the bottlenecks really are.
The manager who removes barriers.
The politician or leader who has the hard conversation.
The child who reminds everyone why the work matters.
These people don’t just help deliver change.
They create belief.
People are far more likely to embrace something when it comes from someone they trust than from another presentation or strategy document.
Find the people who are naturally curious.
Listen to them.
Build with them rather than for them.
Think big. Start small.
Having an ambitious vision is important.
Trying to deliver the whole vision on day one isn’t.
One approach I’ve found increasingly valuable is balancing quick wins with longer-term transformation.
Deliver something small that solves a real problem.
Alongside it, continue building the bigger solution.
The quick win demonstrates credibility.
The larger programme creates sustainability.
Neither works as well without the other.
Focus where you’ll create the biggest ripple
Not every problem needs solving first.
Some improvements create disproportionate impact.
Ask yourself:
- Where is frustration highest?
- Where can we reduce unnecessary effort?
- Which improvement will make the next improvement easier?
Sometimes changing one small process removes friction for hundreds of people every day.
That’s leverage.
Progress over perfection
Perhaps the biggest mindset shift for me has been accepting that imperfect progress usually beats perfect plans.
It’s tempting to wait until everything is ready.
Until every stakeholder agrees.
Until every risk has been eliminated.
But systems rarely change that way.
Learning happens through doing.
Every small improvement teaches you something that makes the next one better.
My biggest takeaway
Today, I still believe in ambitious transformation.
I just no longer believe it happens through one giant leap.
It happens through relationships.
Through trust.
Through learning.
Through hundreds of conversations.
Through dozens of small improvements that slowly change how people think, work and collaborate.
The irony is that when you stop trying to change everything at once, you often end up changing far more than you ever imagined.
So if you’re trying to improve a service, transform an organisation, or redesign care, remember this:
Find your allies.
Deliver something small.
Learn from it.
Build momentum.
Because lasting change isn’t built in a day.
It’s built one improvement at a time.
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