{"id":54533,"date":"2026-08-22T17:29:14","date_gmt":"2026-08-22T15:29:14","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.turner.nl\/uncategorized\/column-by-peter-de-bruin-i-want\/"},"modified":"2026-08-22T17:29:25","modified_gmt":"2026-08-22T15:29:25","slug":"column-by-peter-de-bruin-i-want","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.turner.nl\/en\/blog-en\/column-by-peter-de-bruin-i-want\/","title":{"rendered":"Column by Peter de Bruin | \u201cI Want!\u201d"},"content":{"rendered":"\t\t
\n\t\t\t\t\t\t
\n\t\t\t\t\t\t
\n\t\t\t\t\t
\n\t\t\t
\n\t\t\t\t\t\t
\n\t\t\t\t\t\t
\n\t\t\t\t\t
\n\t\t\t
\n\t\t\t\t\t\t
\n\t\t\t\t
\n\t\t\t\t\t

Column by Peter de Bruin<\/h2>\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t
\n\t\t\t\t
\n\t\t\t\t\t

\"I want to!\"<\/h1>\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t
\n\t\t\t\t
\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t
\n\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/span>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t
\n\t\t\t\t
\n\t\t\t\t\t

If you want to change the organization, you\u2019d better change yourself first, argues Peter de Bruin in his final column of the year. If that doesn\u2019t lead to some New Year\u2019s resolutions\u2026 :)<\/h2>\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t
\n\t\t\t
\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t
\n\t\t\t
\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/section>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/section>\n\t\t\t\t
\n\t\t\t\t\t\t
\n\t\t\t\t\t
\n\t\t\t
\n\t\t\t\t\t\t
\n\t\t\t\t
\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t
\n\t\t\t
<\/div>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/section>\n\t\t\t\t
\n\t\t\t\t\t\t
\n\t\t\t\t\t
\n\t\t\t
\n\t\t\t\t\t\t
\n\t\t\t\t
\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t

\u201cThey don\u2019t do what I say,\u201d the CEO said, explaining the lackluster quarterly results to a small group of analysts. \u201cWe do have a strategy\u2014do I really have to explain it all over again?\u201d she continued indignantly. In the room, you can sense her helpless isolation. Indeed, she receives no support from her colleagues there. Only the spokesperson tries to salvage the awkward situation somewhat. <\/p>

A feisty woman, but out of touch with reality\u2014at least as far as her team is concerned. It\u2019s painful that no one dares to tell her that. Nowhere do the listeners sense any sense of \u201cpulling together.\u201d Yet that is, after all, the essence of a company. Company, literally \u201ccompanionship\u201d; with whom do you do business\u2014the company? <\/p>

Connection\u2014it seems so obvious. And yet, in many organizations, we see a desperate urge to act on the part of know-it-all lone wolves. They try to change others through their way of thinking. That doesn\u2019t work\u2014you can only change yourself. You can\u2019t decide anything for someone else. But a different way of leading, inspiring, connecting, explaining, listening, motivating, dealing with mistakes, and so on, may help others change. As a leader, you have influence over others\u2014significant influence. A different version of yourself challenges and invites others. Their different context begins with you.<\/p>

Over the past year, I\u2019ve really experienced what it\u2019s like to change myself. And how! With the right help, I\u2019ve come a lot closer to who I truly am. This has allowed me to replace the question \u201cWho do I want to be?\u201d with \u201cWho do I want to be with?\u201d The effect is noticeable\u2014for me and those around me. And as a result, I\u2019m getting different reactions to my actions, different invitations, and different relationships. My takeaway is that it\u2019s better for everyone. <\/p>

I wanted to change myself. Ownership(*1)<\/sup>. And the rest is history. \u201cYou have to do it yourself, but you don\u2019t have to do it alone,\u201d said the resource I chose\u2014someone from a context different from what I was used to. Ergo, a change in context helped me change. The dichotomy is telling: changing yourself changes your context. As a result, others can change (along with you). And conversely, a different context helps you change yourself. <\/p>

The CEO mentioned wants to change the organization. She wants to do it herself. And so she stands alone. That won\u2019t get the company anywhere. She\u2019d be better off changing herself! If she creates a different context for herself, then change won\u2019t be just for others. Only then will she no longer be alone. And others will change along with her. <\/p>

The way you bring about change says more about the outcome than the strategy itself. What challenge will your organization face in 2024? My advice: Change yourself\u2014be willing to do so! By changing yourself, you\u2019ll have the greatest influence on others. <\/p>

<\/p>

(*1)<\/span><\/sup> \u201cI want to\u201d is the most important statement for change. We see this principle elsewhere as well\u2014for example, in social medicine. Pediatrician Elise van de Putte has spent her entire career researching the prospects for recovery among chronically fatigued children through behavioral therapy. She describes two types of children. Adolescents who speak in the first person and describe themselves as active agents, and those who present themselves as passive recipients of events. The latter group seeks solutions to their problems outside themselves and rarely \u201crecover\u201d fully. The first group pulls through. Where there\u2019s a will, \u2026 source: NRC, December 16, 2023 <\/i><\/span><\/p>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/section>\n\t\t\t\t

\n\t\t\t\t\t\t
\n\t\t\t\t\t
\n\t\t\t
\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t
\n\t\t\t
\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t
\n\t\t\t
\n\t\t\t\t\t\t
\n\t\t\t\t
\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t
\n\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/span>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t
\n\t\t\t\t
\n\t\t\t\t\t

Meet the Author<\/h3>\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t
\n\t\t\t
\n\t\t\t\t\t\t
\n\t\t\t\t
\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t
\n\t\t\t\t
\n\t\t\t
\n\t\t\t\t
\"\"