However, what the Marie Kondo series does show us is the formula of one of the earliest models for change management which was developed by Kurt Lewin in the 1940s. Lewin’s model of unfreeze (create the will for change), change (do the change) and freeze (embed the change) is simple, and creates an easy framework for change management projects.
I’d used Marie as an example of the formula used by TV change and make-over programmes.
If you’ve seen a TV change and usa rcs data make-over programmes you’ll recognise the process:
There’s a big shock or confrontation as the subject of the episode realises what an impact their hoarding/ eating/ bad clothes has on their daily life (unfreeze).
We then follow their change ‘journey’ usually with crying and many epiphanies culminating in what TV calls the ‘big reveal’ (change). This is where we see the results of all their hard work.
But, most importantly, the programmes have a revisit, they go back and see how the person is doing and whether they’ve maintained their new behaviours (freeze).
TV programmes are all about the people – and so is change management. We see people going through grief as they lose their old behaviours. We see the change curve in action (developed by Kubler-Ross).
The change is not delivered by the skip hire company collecting someone’s hoard, or the website delivering someone a new outfit.