Chief Change Officer
#81 Colin Savage: A Change Addict’s Quest Across Borders—From Canada to Japan and Beyond — Part One
Wed, 27 Nov 2024
Part One. Welcome to a special three-part series with Colin Savage. we’ll dive into Colin’s fascinating journey as a self-proclaimed change addict turned change guru. Colin’s career spans continents, cultures, and industries—seven countries lived in, seven more seconded to, and projects in over 70 nations. From organizational transformation to personal reinvention, he’s mastered the art of embracing change and applying those lessons to life. Here, we’ll explore the learning required for transformation—why Colin believes lifelong learning is outdated and skill stacking is the future. And finally, we’ll tackle AI, human intelligence, and why every one of us needs a personal AI strategy. Buckle up—this one’s a ride! Key Highlights of Our Interview: Chasing Novelty vs. Finding Purpose “It’s easy to leap into new opportunities just because they look exciting. But what’s the endgame? Without a deeper reason or plan, chasing novelty can leave you with unfinished experiences and a string of ‘almost-there’ moments. Purpose turns adventures into meaningful chapters.” Addicted to Change: Thrill or Trap? “Addiction to novelty isn’t inherently bad—it pushes boundaries and opens up opportunities. But unbridled chasing without reflection or completion risks shallow experiences. The key? Balancing the thrill of change with the discipline to extract value from every leap.” Change as a Tool, Not a Fix “Change for the sake of novelty often leads to dissatisfaction. Instead, approach change as a tool for growth, not a quick fix. Thoughtfully evaluate your motives, assess your readiness, and embrace change as a means to align with your purpose—not as an escape from discomfort.” Japan: A Surprising Example of Measured Change “Even in traditionally conservative cultures, like Japan’s life insurance industry, meaningful change can thrive. Success here came not from disruption but from careful planning, patience, and conversations that built consensus. Change, when handled thoughtfully, can flourish even in the most traditional environments.” _________________________ Connect with us: Host: Vince Chan | Guest: Colin Savage Chief Change Officer: Make Change Ambitiously. Experiential Human Intelligence for Growth Progressives Global Top 3% Podcast on Listen Notes World's #1 Career Podcast on Apple Top 1: US, CA, MX, IE, HU, AT, CH, FI, JP 2 Millions+ Downloads 50+ Countries --Chief Change Officer--Change Ambitiously. Outgrow Yourself.Open a World of Expansive Human Intelligencefor Transformation Gurus, Black Sheep,Unsung Visionaries & Bold Hearts.EdTech Leadership Awards 2025 Finalist.18 Million+ All-Time Downloads.80+ Countries Reached Daily.Global Top 1.5% Podcast.Top 10 US Business.Top 1 US Careers.>>>170,000+ are outgrowing. Act Today.<<<
Chapter 1: What is Colin Savage's journey as a change addict?
Hi, everyone. Welcome to our show, Chief Change Officer. I'm Vince Chen, your ambitious human host. Our show is a modernist community for change progressives in organizational and human transformation from around the world. This is a three-part series with Colin Selvidge.
In part one, the first episode, we'll dive into Colin's fascinating journey as a self-proclaimed change addict turned change guru. Colin's career spans continents, cultures, and industries, seven countries lived in, seven more seconded to, and projects in over 70 nations.
From organizational transformation to personal reinvention, he has mastered the art of embracing change and applying those lessons to life. In this conversation, Colin unpacks his unique perspective on change. How throwing himself into the unknown led to unparalleled growth and insight.
From leaving Canada with nothing but a suitcase and ambition, to navigating industries from telecommunications to financial services, Colin shares how the constant evolution around him became his greatest teacher. In the next episodes, we'll explore the learning required for transformation, why Colin believes lifelong learning is outdated and skills decking is the future.
And finally, in part three, we'll tackle AI, human intelligence, and why every one of us needs a personal AI strategy. Buckle up. This one is a ride. Colin, finally, I got you to my show. Welcome to Chief Change Officer. Good morning to you.
Thank you so much for having me, Vincent. Good morning, good afternoon, good evening, everyone.
Colin is from Canada, the Big North, a very cold place. I used to live in Toronto myself. Colin is in another province, or in America, we call it a state. So Colin, let's start with your story. Who are you, what you're doing now, but also what did you do in the past? Your past, your journey, and your history.
Fantastic. Thank you, Vince. Happy to. So I'm Colin, as you introduced, Colin Davidge. I am hailing today from the Queen City, which was Regina, Saskatchewan, Canada. And so I was born and raised here. I lived here until I was probably just out of university. And then I left and lived overseas for 20 years. That really isn't that uncommon.
During the early 90s in Saskatchewan, a lot of people looked for opportunities elsewhere. And even if I look at sort of my high school graduating class drawings, 60, 70% of them stayed in the city and went to our local university. Another chunk maybe went to a university nearby or a neighboring province. And a very small bit even left and moved elsewhere in Canada, like she mentioned, Ontario.
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Chapter 2: How does Colin define a change addict vs. a change guru?
And then luck would have it, I ended up traveling to a developing market with senior people from that city and looked around and just started noticing Don. And then thinking, hey, we should connect these Don to make something unique. And with the Japanese life insurance company, we're in Brazil, we're seeing something that's a bit unique.
In Japan, one of the largest minorities are really, they are people who travel to Japan as youth. They have access to visas and other things, and they start their working life in Japan. So they're actually indoctrinated. They learn working culture from being in Japanese companies, a lot of them, and other work. They learn things like, hey, life insurance is important. You need to have it.
The discussion went, how are we going to go build this idea? And What came about was I learned that change, individual, team, and otherwise, comes from doing a lot of promotion. So Japan is a lot about individual conversations to get support or get direction. Big organizations are great at providing that direction, but often indirectly. There have to be acute conditions.
So, hey, why don't we consider this? Why don't we do that? But also, it's measured and it's planned change. You can't just come up with an idea and throw it at people and get them to say yes or no. You've got to research your idea. This is the market size. These are the people. This is what they would buy. This is how it would benefit them if they stayed where they are or then when they moved back.
This is how we could link a dovetail or a pipeline into getting new people in a new market we might make. So it took a lot of time, but I was very surprised and very proud that we actually managed to get this kind of a lead. Yeah. I got support from lovely people within the organization. They provided their time to me. We moved ahead. It took two years, but the change did happen.
And it was actually a real shining example of just because you think a culture and a group of people are traditional in their practices doesn't mean they're averse to change. You just need to be from that change addict thing we were talking about. Not willy-nilly, not, hey, let's just do it for the sake of doing it.
Be measured, be strategic, be researched in what you want to change, and then find the kind and supportive voices. And if you find enough of them, you'll get groundswell and you'll be able to do it. If you don't, maybe your idea really isn't that great. Maybe you need to go back to the drawing board.
So learn to take the interest and the novelty and the energy that comes from potential change and have it fuel you to do the really important things steps, the fundamental steps to maybe make that change happen. And the flip side would be actually back here in Canada. I worked for a quite traditional marketing company. Probably if I tell you who it is, people will know right away.
They brought me in as a change person. That's how I was recruited. Please come here. We know our industry is on the decline. We're not really entirely sure where to go with it. We've seen what you did in other places. We're eager to change. We want a chance where they use all the right words. They were very receptive to the idea before I moved in house.
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Chapter 3: What lessons can be learned from chasing novelty?
Don't forget, subscribe to our show, leave us top-rated reviews, check out our website, and follow me on social media. I'm Vince Chen, your ambitious human host. Until next time, take care.