Change for change's sake...not always good

Leadership is getting someone to do what they don’t want to do, to achieve what they want to achieve. - Tom Landry

Doug Johnson used this quote as he discussed the difficulties of implementing change in an organization like a school. Change is inevitable, but not all change is good change. I think leadership is making sure you know just what it is everyone around you wants to achieve, first. Then, make sure the stuff they "don't want to do" will actually increase achievement. I sometimes wonder if we hypothesize what will make everything better, then forget to check and see if it IS actually making things better once we have it. Sometimes there's a damn good reason people "don't want to do" certain things - like, it doesn't work! Is hoping that it will all work out in the end worth the fight to convince people it will (when you don't even know that it will)?

My outlook isn't completely cynical. I just want to know that when I am told by a supervisor that I must implement a change, I want to know said person has done their homework. I want to see the data that says it will work and why it works. I don't think that is too much to ask.