For all the talking we do about making changes in our lives or in our world, no one ever tells us quite HOW to go about it at the most basic level. I happened onto something a while back that I love – a model for the Stages of Change by someone named Prochaska. It shows how change actually occurs. It’s like a roadmap for change from start to finish. Here are the stages: Pre-contemplation – Contemplation – Preparation – Action – Maintenance.

Here’s how they work: Pre-contemplation (you kinda sorta think you might want to lose some weight one of these days, for instance); Contemplation (now you really start focusing on how you want to take off 15 pounds); Preparation (you start exploring different weight loss programs); Action (you sign up for Weight Watchers, eat differently and go to meetings); and Maintenance (you continue eating well and keep the weight off so the change is a permanent part of your life).

Clearly, marketing initiatives go through these same stages. It’s easy to see how ideas knock around in the Pre-contemplation stage for a while before we get down to business. In Contemplation, we assess an idea’s viability and move into strategic thinking, research, etc. In Preparation, we create a campaign and align necessary components so that all systems are go. In Action, we launch an initiative and enact our carefully planned strategy. In Maintenance, we continue to support a program, gathering data and fine-tuning as needed.

There’s nothing really new in this, of course. But I think it’s helpful to have a model that reminds me where we are in the process and where we’re headed. It makes change more manageable and less of a mystery.

For a more detailed example of Prochaska’s stages, visit:
http://barrieranalysis.fhi.net/what_is/prochaskas_diagram.htm

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