This is important, but not the most important, or the first thing to do in starting a movement within a corporation.

My other previous posts talk about what you do first.

But once you have some momentum and something to show for it, then you can notify a friendly executive and see if they will just advocate for you.

Don’t ask for sponsorship or funding right away. That’s what everyone else does. Or that’s what they think they need first.

But you can meet with people, plan some things, and publish prolifically about your idea before you get executives involved. They are more likely to support you if you can show them some evidence.

Executives listen to other executives.

So, if you can get one to talk about you and your idea with the others then you’ve got something. It’s a small validation. A testimonial from someone who has influence.

That’s how you pick up some momentum.

But it’s not the be-all end-all answer. It’s just a step in your journey of starting a movement within your corporation.

Continue the journey.

If you don't want to do the first, you won't accomplish the second.

Change, real change, happens when people choose to act differently.

And they'll only make that choice if the environment around them makes it obvious.

So, how do you get the environment to make it obvious?

Everyone else is the environment.

How do you get everyone else to make the choice?

One. Person. At. A. Time.

Now we're down to the core issue.

Can you influence one person to make the choice you're recommending?

What about two people?

Three's a crowd and now you have something.

A seed of change.

That's what I like to call a 'micromovement.'

Gotta be micro before you can be macro.

Go plant your seed.

Let’s talk

You know what to do.

The same principles for gathering an audience out on the internet are the same within a large corporation.

Do something worth talking about. Talk about it. Then give others a way to share your story.

Don't get stuck at the first step. Doing something worth talking about could mean writing about an idea worth talking about. Or sharing evidence that an idea might be worth pursuing.

If you have an idea worth talking about, then by all means, do.

Find them

Do you know why?

So you can find the others.

When you speak up, sure, you'll find the naysayers, all those who take the easy path and criticize your idea, telling you why it won't work.

But you'll also find those who believe: People who agree with you, who think the idea is worth pursuing and are willing to support whatever effort you create.

That's the main purpose of publishing, or raising your hand:

To find those who agree and create a relationship with them.

Whoever comments or gives you positive feedback, send a one-on-one message thanking them for being part of the movement. This will start a conversation.

And how do you make friends? Have a lot of conversations.

Connect people

When you have a lot of friends and you connect them to each other, then you’re creating a community.

Communities have power. They are stronger than any one individual. And when they have a message to share, people listen.

Movements are started by people.

Find your people.

And then help them understand the rallying cry.

Because you won't be the only one declaring it.

Not if you want to start a movement.

Share

To get attention

…in a classroom, you raise your hand.

To get attention online, you publish.

Of course, a lot of people are publishing, so that's not necessarily the full answer. You can definitely be part of the noise.

But if you don't publish, then you definitely won't get noticed.

Speak up

First you have to speak up.

Then you have to speak up well, and often.

Or, you have to speak up in a smaller classroom.

If you publish within your large company, then you are more likely to get noticed because it's a smaller pond than the entire internet.

Does your company have an internal platform where you can share information, articles, and such? I know ours does, and that there are more and more platforms available. Yammer (Microsoft), Workplace (by Meta), and Google Workspace are probably the most popular, but there are many others. (I’m curious, what do you use?)

No matter what platform you use, the opportunity is available. And if there is no platform, then you can use email. Start publishing useful information in an email to all your friends, let them share it, and if others want to be added to your list they just send you a request.

But that’s just tactics.

A repeated message gets heard

The important point is that you are putting your ideas out into the world (your small corporate world) to see how people react. You may get some real supporters, but you also may get naysayers, or challengers. That’s good. Listen to them. Take into account their feedback.

But if they don’t have a reasonable foundation for contradicting your idea, then it’s not for them. And don’t waste time trying to convince them. Let your supporters do that.

And if you want to rise above the noise of other publishing within your company, publish more often than is usual. And use different mediums, text, video, audio.

What if you posted something every day? What if it was a video?

They’ll notice

People will begin to notice.

You’ll get attention, especially within a corporation, it’s a small pond.

Then, you’ll be on your way to starting a movement.

But there’s more.

Everyone has an idea.

Something that could be done better. A better process, a better product, a better way to work together.

But they don’t share it.

Why?

Because…

• it’s too hard to change things

• I’ll get laughed at

• The boss won’t let me

• etc.

But you know what?

The way you’re doing things now, wasn’t the way it was always done.

So, somebody had to change things at some point.

Why couldn’t it be you this time?

I know there are a myriad of obstacles for implementing new ideas in a large corporation. But that’s what makes it a challenge, and so much more rewarding when you accomplish it.

If a puzzle had only 10 pieces instead of 1000, what would be the point of doing it?

If a maze only had one turn, would it even be a maze?

And if you only had to bench press 5 pounds, would you get any stronger?

No.

So, first realize, yes, this is hard.

But also realize, yes, you can do it.

Next, how?

Well, how does anything get done in a corporation?

Schedule a meeting.

Because in a large corporation, anybody can meet with anyone about anything. It’s true.

Now, I know everyone hates meetings. They really get a bad rap, only because people have abused them. But if you want to work through a problem, and get other people to help you, by bouncing ideas off of each other and making plans, then you need to meet.

But with who?

Find your closest friends who agree with your idea and want to support you implementing it. You could have a few as 3 of you, or as many as 7 or 8, but you don’t need more than that.

Then, you put your heads together and figure out a way to start testing your idea at the smallest level. All you need is some small effort or change to show some kind of difference.

Remember, you have an assumption about how something could be better. That assumption is not a fact until you test it out in your company. It may have worked in other places, but your company is different. So, implement some form of your idea on a small scale. Gather some data. Then see if you can get others involved.

Forward motion is always better than complaining. And even the smallest action is motion.

It might be so small you’d call it micro.

So get moving! Micro-moving!