The world has suffered greatly these past few months. Deaths, devastation and destruction has hit world economies in ways we could never have imagined. Throughout this pandemic, one thing remained a constant. “CHANGE”. This pandemic has brought the world to its knees and forced leaders, societies, organisations, institutions and entire nations to change the way they work to ensure the cogs continue to move despite the dangers that loom.

One of the fundamentals of change is having the DESIRE to change. Throughout the pandemic, Covid19 was given huge coverage globally, bringing with it much needed awareness of the plague the world was facing. While the world was still trying to digest and understand this new strain of pandemic, change was already being enforced in most countries. Nations were put on lockdown, schools were closed, towering skyscrapers were sealed off and only those deemed most essential were allowed to carry out their duties. Working from home which used to be seen as a novelty and luxury, became the norm. People were FORCED to change.  

Generally, we have learnt that in ideal situations when implementing change, using force or autocratic approach would be the final option. We as change practitioners take pride in our duty in ensuring a smooth and seamless transition in any change situation. Resistance are carefully managed to avoid any repercussion to the implementation. Managing the multitude of change that happened during Covid19, force was the modus operandi for most of the implementation, due the severity of the situation. Hopefully, some of the positive changes which took place will continue to be part of new norms in society.

On a personal note, this change experience that I have learnt as a Muslim taught me to never take things for granted. Something which seems so mundane and normal like being able to attend Friday prayers seemed like such an out-of-reach luxury when the lockdown was implemented here in Malaysia. Now that the CMCO has been introduced, we are allowed to resume Friday prayers in the mosque albeit in a much smaller crowd. Where people usually take their time and arrive just as prayers were beginning and still be guaranteed a spot is now a thing of the past. You not only have to send in your application and wait for approval to attend Friday prayers. You need to arrive early to ensure your spot and must remember to bring your own prayer mat, face mask and make sure to take your ablution prior to arriving.  

The new norm requires a person to plan ahead of time, bring the tools required to complete your job and be ready to face the consequence of being rejected. The old norm would not require any of those. The pandemic raised the level of readiness of a person to greater heights which is a positive note to a person’s life.  

What’s in it for me? By being early you would have time to read Quran while waiting for Friday sermon and this would give a higher level of concentration and focus. Being conscious of how difficult it is to get a place  to attend  Friday prayers provides attendees with a sense of achievement, appreciation and ultimately better concentration to list and appreciate the sermon.  

The most important aspect of any change is the outcome of the change being made. Despite the approach of change being through Epistemology or Force, the end would still justify the means as long as it is legal and ethical. But the Covid19 pandemic proves that in certain circumstances positive change can happen if you deploy an autocratic approach rather than a democratic one. You would win the hearts and the minds of the 20% rather than trying to do so with a larger group. What it takes is the strong determination of the leadership in the organization.  

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