Shifting Sands: A Guidebook for Crossing the Deserts of Change

Steve Donahue is a professional speaker, consultant, and coach. He has addressed hundreds of corporations and tens of thousands of individuals on the subjects of personal and organizational change, teamwork, life balance, diversity, innovation, and discovering genius. He has worked with such clients as AT&T, IBM, Pills- bury, Procter & Gamble, Bank of America, Unilever, Best Foods, Molson Canada, and Volkswagen Canada. He was a director of the Hoffman Institute Canada for British Columbia from 1995 to 1997. In partnership with InCourage, he developed an interactive CD titled Shifting Sands, an experiential change-management simulation for organizations in transition. He lives on Vancouver Island in British Columbia with his two teenage children.

"We had no vehicle. We didn't know how or if we could continue heading south. I was in a vast, seemingly endless desert. I didn't know when or if we'd make it to the other side. I didn't even know where the other side was. It wasn't in Algeria. I knew that much. Was it in Niger? Where does the Sahara actually end?" We live in a culture, Donahue writes, which loves "climbing mountains." We want to see the peak, map out a route, and follow it to the top. Sometimes this approach works, but not always, particularly when we are enduring a personal crisis-divorce, job loss, addiction, illness, or death. We may not know exactly where we are going, how to get there, or even how we'll know we've arrived. And it's not just in times of crisis. There are many deserts in our lives, situations with no clear paths or boundaries. Finding a job is usually a mountain, but changing careers can be a desert. Having a baby is a mountain, especially for the mom. But raising a child is a desert. Battling cancer is a mountain. Living with a chronic illness is a desert. In the desert, we need to follow different rules than we follow when conquering a mountain. We need to be more intuitive, more patient, more spontaneous. Donahue outlines six "rules of desert travel" that will help us discover our direction by wandering, find our own personal oases, and cross our self-imposed borders. "The sun appears like a silent explosion, a slow motion fireworks display dazzling the volcanic crags of the Hoggar. I stand up and walk to the path and begin descending to Klaus' car. I've made my decision. Tallis and I will travel, somehow, to Agadez. I don't have a logical explanation for my decision or a plan to get to the last oasis. I know I am on the right journey-I am following my compass." Shifting Sands shows us how to slow down, reflect, and embrace the changes of life graciously, naturally, and courageously.

Map Preface Prologue: Are You Crossing a Desert or Climbing a Mountain? Chapter One--Follow a Compass, Not a Map Let Go of the Destination Lower Your Gaze Wander on Purpose Chapter Two--Stop at Every Oasis Build a Wall Water What’s Dry Look for Unmarked Oases Chapter Three--When You’re Stuck, Deflate Know When You’re Stuck Stop Pushing Look for Little Deflations Chapter Four--Travel Alone Together Don’t Do What’s “Natural” Seek Support Sooner or Risk Rescue Later Become a Part-Time Hermit Chapter Five--Step Away from Your Campfire Hang Out with a Nomad Always Be Unprepared Learn When to Duck Chapter Six--Don’t Stop at False Borders Know What a False Border Looks Like Call the Border Guard’s Bluff Look for Your Hot Shower Epilogue Loving the Sand, Wherever It Is Dedication Index About the Author