LOOK UP! The Human Side of Change Starts With Awareness, Peace, and Connection

By Dr. Katie Eastman

I recently travelled through two major U.S. airports using a walking stick with a broken hip. It changed how I saw something I thought I already understood: how people behave under pressure, in transition, and in moments of change.

People rushed. Heads down. Eyes on screens. Focused on gates, luggage, children, time.

Not unkind. Just absorbed in the complexity of “getting through.”

And I realized: we are all carrying something. In times of change, what we carry becomes heavier.

Navigating crowds with a walking stick made vulnerability very real. At times I was jostled, overlooked, or left standing when doing so caused significant pain.

Eventually, I stopped waiting to be noticed and began asking clearly for what I needed:

“Please allow me to use the accessible seat.”

“Please wait so I can get through.”

What happened surprised me. Most people responded immediately.

They weren’t unkind. They simply hadn’t noticed.

That distinction matters.

Since co-authoring The Peace Guidebook: How to Cultivate Hope, Harmony and Healing for the Good of All Humankind with Elizabeth Hamilton-Guarino, I’ve thought deeply about peace as something we practice—a way of moving through the world.

Pause. Breathe. Choose.

Look up!

Travel became a mirror for what happens in organizations experiencing change.

Deadlines. Pressure. Complexity. Constant movement. We shift into autopilot and optimize for speed rather than awareness. We become so focused on getting through the change that we can stop seeing the people experiencing it.

And people are watching their leaders.

Do we notice who is struggling with the pace?

Do we make space for someone adapting more slowly?

Do people feel safe saying, “I need help”?

Or are we moving so quickly that we unintentionally normalize invisibility?

Sometimes peace isn’t passive. Sometimes it means having the courage to speak clearly and kindly about what is needed—and being present enough to hear someone when they do.

So my message is simple:

LOOK UP.

Look up from the urgency.

Look up from the plan.

Look up from the screen.

Look up from the pressure to deliver.

Slow down long enough to see the human being in front of you.

Because in every organization, every system, and every moment of change, someone is carrying more than you can see.

The human side of change isn’t a “soft” issue. It is foundational to creating meaningful, productive, sustainable change, for individuals, organizations, and ultimately the communities our actions ripple into.

Pause. Breathe. Choose.

Look up!

And perhaps, when we do, more people will look up too.