Circumstances are the rulers of the weak; they are but the instruments of the wise.
—Samuel Lover

The last of the Four Forces in the Change Leadership Framework are the forces that are external to the person or organization.

We cannot be separated from our environment. Although we may, at times, attempt to separate ourselves mentally from our environment and explore the limits of our imagination, we still depend on our environment for our very existence. Various psychologists have additionally argued that without interactions and relationships with others, we would also perish. So the environment undoubtedly plays an enormous role in our lives.

The list of environmental forces is infinite, but here are some examples:

When people think of change, they usually think of changing their environment. But people must thoroughly analyze the environmental forces and then assess them in the context of the other three forces before an optimal change plan can be formulated.

Being a highly effective change leader requires disciplined thoroughness. Be sure to analyze the customer’s environmental forces as thoroughly as you analyze the forces of the customer’s internal needs, behavioral tendencies, and cognitive strategies—and vice versa.

Depending on the nature of your product and service, a basic understanding of the key environmental forces that are influencing the current purchase may be sufficient. As the value of your product and service increases, however, a deep understanding of the environmental forces enables you to forecast trends and develop highly innovative changes that help the customer take advantage of the environment. When you help the customer harness environmental forces, you truly become a strategic resource, resulting in higher revenues for your customer—and you.

Identify the key environmental forces influencing the current purchasing cycle. Develop a proposal that helps the customer succeed in the environment. Add maximum value by identifying opportunities to harness environmental forces and trends.