Change is hard. Not hard in the sense that it is complex. Though it can certainly be that at times. It’s not hard in the sense that it is impossible. Though it can feel like that. Change is hard in that it takes much longer and will cost you much more than you might ever have considered going into it.

When I first became president at Southeastern, I believed the university needed a major overhaul. And I was right. But I completely underestimated how much time it would take to make the shifts necessary to position the organization for growth.

The whole experience felt like walking through quicksand. Sometimes we had to take steps backward before we could move forward.

Most people develop their impressions about the cost and energy required to change by observing what change looks like from the outside in. They start with the result that can be traced back to a strategic plan and a defined goal. Consequently, many people begin to believe there was as much clarity moving forward as there is looking back. This is where perception and reality diverge.

Change Can Feel Like a Marathon

Change is always about moving forward. And moving forward is a series of course corrections and best guesses. The plan you end up following often starts with a series of hunches, which lead to open doors — and sometimes closed doors. You have to pivot regularly and admit many times you are just adapting in an attempt to maintain momentum.

Change is like running a marathon. If you’ve ever attempted such an activity, you may understand what I mean. Running 26.2 miles can be daunting. Yet every year, millions of people try it. Many will succeed in completing that distance. Some won’t.

The hardest part about running a marathon is not miles one through 13. There are typically a lot more runners willing to run a half-marathon distance verses a full marathon.

Many races will start the half-marathoners and marathoners at the same time and location. Then around mile 13, a substantial number of people will peel off to head for their finish line. That’s when you know the marathon has just begun.

Most people who run these distances enough tell me the most challenging miles are 16 through 20. The crowds have thinned. If anyone was cheering you on, they typically have already moved closer to the finish line. It’s a long, lonely road. You are too far in to quit, but you’re battling your mind and beginning to wonder to yourself whether it’s ever going to end.

Push Through the Resistance

Seth Godin, the marketing futurist, talks about a similar experience in business leadership called “the dip.” In fact, he wrote a book about it. He describes this experience as a clarifying exercise. Your ability to push through the resistance and ambiguity will determine whether you come out of the dip. It will push you to your limits, and you will either lean in or give up.

Leading through change is one of the hardest things you’ll ever do as a leader.

That’s exactly what change feels like for those who have ever led through it. It feels lonely most of the time. And it’s not uncommon to doubt yourself as you are moving through it. All of your initial excitement has waned, and you are living off your determination to see it through.

I’m convinced most leaders never see true change come about under their leadership because they aren’t willing to push through the inevitable dip. It’s so easy just to give up and give in. In fact, people you respect may even encourage you to do so.

This is where you must pull from deep within yourself to find the resolve and conviction to continue to press in toward the change that is right in front of you.

The good news is there is light at the end of the tunnel. And I promise that’s more than just an overly used, proverbial leadership statement. It does exist. And if you are willing to stay the course long enough, you’ll discover two things changed in your pursuit of your vision: you and the people around you.

Leading Through Change Changes You

I think the impact change has on a leader may be one of the most undervalued things that take place. Since most of the conversation around change focuses on external entities, like teams, departments and organizations, it’s easy to overlook and underestimate the reality that the pursuit of change impacts the leader, too.

Maybe you think leaders who lead through change regularly have some superpower that keeps them going. Perhaps you believe change agents don’t fear failure — or anything else, for that matter. While many admirable characteristics may be present, it’s also true that leaders who lead through change are equally encouraged and humbled at the same time.

True change — even self-change — isn’t accomplished on your own. It requires a strong support system and a sharp mind to ensure none of the distractions that will inevitably come your way will sideline you or take you so far off course you have to start all over at the very beginning.

Leading through change is one of the hardest things you’ll ever do as a leader. But it’s also the place where you’ll grow the most, personally and professionally.

Overconfidence is often indicative of leaders who haven’t yet experienced what leading through change looks and feels like. For those leaders who have done so, there is a quiet respect for the long journey ahead — a journey that isn’t governed by speed but by the pure determination to endure until the end and make it true.

Are you ready to lead through change?