Why Self-Regulation Programs Rely on Change Management Fundamentals
I was honored to join my mentor, Sherry Shellenberger, OTR/L, on the OT Schoolhouse Podcast (Episode 186). Together, we explore a critical but often overlooked foundation for sustainable change: the body’s sensory-motor capacity to self-regulate.
While our conversation is rooted in the experience of school leaders and occupational therapists, the principles apply broadly — to teams in corporate, healthcare, nonprofit, startup and other environments navigating major change.
Too often, change initiatives focus on messaging, emotions or high-level strategy, while neglecting the underlying sensorimotor system.
As Sherry points out:
“Sensory-motor self-regulation and emotional regulation are hugely intertwined… But if we leave out the sensory-motor supports and just go to the idea of identifying emotions, I feel like we’ve done a disservice.”
In other words: you simply cannot build lasting change on shaky internal regulation.
In the episode we cover:
How to communicate the value of a sensory-motor foundation to decision-makers and stakeholders.
How to integrate sensorimotor self-regulation with existing emotional/SEL programs — it’s not either/or, it’s AND.
How to pilot change initiatives effectively: gathering data, building stakeholder buy-in, shifting from individual interventions to system-wide impact.
Why change managers, team leaders or anyone guiding abstract initiatives should pay attention to the physical regulation piece before tackling behavior/emotion alone.
A relevance for all change leaders
Whether you manage a corporate transformation, lead a team through new processes, or implement a new culture initiative — the question is the same: Is your team physiologically primed to learn, adapt and engage?
If not, the strategy may fall flat. Already, Sherry and I discuss how the “engine” of regulation must run well before the “car” (the change) can move.
If you’re leading change, working with teams, managing complex initiatives — this conversation could shift your perspective in a meaningful way.
Tune in and discover how aligning the body-mind system can accelerate meaningful change.
