I have said it here before, but as we start a new year, it bears repeating: Leading change is one of the most important roles of a leader. The new year provides a natural time for us to reflect on the changes needed to avoid the pitfalls of the year before, or to get closer to the preferred future we see. We often set new goals to shrink our waistlines, grow our churches and create healthy margins in our lives. So why do we often end the year the same size we started and feeling worn out? Well, because change is hard, life happens, and we have trust issues. Let me explain.

We know we won’t change until the pain of staying the same becomes greater than the pain of change. However, waiting until we reach that threshold can mean negative consequences for those God calls us to lead. Change is hard, no doubt, but if it were easy, there would be no need for you to lead. Change is why you’re there — to lead people (and yourself) from where they (you) are to where they (you) need to be. Do you really want to wait until the pain of staying the same becomes too great? How much damage or missed opportunity will there be in the meantime? The best time to make a change is the first time you see the need.

The best time to make a change is the first time you see the need.

We start with the best of intentions. We really do. But inevitably, we get distracted, and unforeseen circumstances hijack the change we set out to make. We recognize a need for change, life happens, frustration sets in, and the process repeats. It’s a vicious cycle. This is where greater intentionality and planning come in. We can think about the time and emotional energy it takes to see change through in the same terms we talk about financial planning. We should create margin in how we budget, save for rainy days and surprises, and regularly manage the financial flow. We must do the same with our time and energy, which are both essential to leading personal and organizational change.

And about that margin: The reason we don’t have any is because we as leaders often have trust issues. Giving away responsibility is a necessary part of creating margin, but we don’t trust others to do what we’ve been doing. Whether you want to change your waistline or grow your church, you can’t do it without creating margin in your life to lead that change — and you can’t create margin without lightening your current load and giving away responsibility to others.

This article originally appeared in the January/February 2018 edition of Influence magazine.