I recently shared my insights on the value of embracing discomfort. There are few things that tend to make people more uncomfortable than change. However, shifting circumstances aren’t just necessary or inevitable; they can actually be an amazing catalyst for growth and learning. That’s why, as a leader, it’s your job to not just help your team embrace these shifts, but to drive them.

There are two kinds of change: change that happens to us and change that happens by us. But no matter how you slice it, we should strive to view these transformations as something that happens for us and our greater good. I’ve spent much of both my life and career thriving through both kinds of change and it’s taught me a number of lessons:

Make it Meaningful

Ensure the shifts you seek to make are meaningful and drive a positive outcome — i.e., don’t seek change simply for its own sake. Make sure you’re using it to be bold and make a lasting impact. You can also help yourself and your team avoid becoming mired in the hard parts by reminding them that there are better times on the other side. Remember, that’s why it’s happening in the first place — to make things better. In fact, the most important lessons are often learned from the uncertainty in the middle of change, which makes it very meaningful when you look back on it later.

Inspire Based on Trust

While you know you’re making things better through change, it’s important to bring others along on that journey. Facts and figures have never inspired transformation. If you want to get people on board, you’ll need to tap into their motivations and feelings. Speaking to people’s hearts and minds is what inspires action, and that’s not something you can manufacture or force.

To lead through change, your team needs to trust you. In fact, trust in leadership is more important now than ever. How do you earn that trust? By leading the way not just through your words, but through your actions. This point was recently driven home by Keith Barr, CEO, InterContinental Hotels Group at a recent Audeliss and INvolve panel discussion. Barr reminded us that others hear what we say, but more importantly, they see what we do.

You Don’t Need to Be the Expert

You’ll often need to drive change when you don’t have all the answers. I’ve spent much of my career in this gray area, and I’m actually accustomed to it at this point. For instance, in 2005 I was living and working quite happily in Chicago when I moved to Washington, D.C. to take on an entirely new role leading government travel, when my past experience had been in commercial. I surrounded myself with a team of extraordinary experts who helped us achieve incredible results.

I did the same thing when I relocated from Washington, D.C. to Singapore in 2011 to lead our business across Asia Pacific. When I arrived there, it was following the financial crisis and there was enormous pent-up demand for travel. I was in a new place and a new environment, navigating totally new cultures and circumstances. I quickly put the best people in the right jobs, focusing on local leaders who had deep expertise that I didn’t have. It’s the only way we were able to successfully navigate such a complex and challenging situation and ultimately thrive, driving growth and opportunity for everyone.

Make the Hard Decisions

As leaders, at some point in our careers we will have to make difficult decisions that make change happen for someone who isn’t choosing it — like addressing underperformance or even letting someone go. It can be even harder when you consider that, in many situations, those people are loyal to the company and work hard; they may just be the wrong person at the wrong time in the wrong role. Although it may not seem like it at the time, you’re likely doing them a favor by creating change for them, helping them move on and opening them up to new possibilities — and perhaps even their dream job.

Whether we initiate it or not, change is a constant in our personal and professional lives, and that’s certainly more true now than ever. In fact, I’m on a new change journey of my own right now as a special advisor, stepping away from my former role at the company I love, CWT, and where I’ve spent more than 30 years building a rewarding career with the best colleagues anyone could ask for. As my future unfolds, I simply can’t wait to see what’s next and to step out into what’s possible and new.

This article was originally published on Kelly’s blog.