Posts Tagged ‘honouring resistance’

Resistance: "I don’t know how to do the new behaviours"

Wednesday, June 11th, 2008

The other day I posted a blog listing some of the reasons for resisting Change.  This is the third in series exploring those reasons. 

Today’s reason is “I don’t know how to ‘do’ the new behaviour”.  The thing is, role models play a key part in our learning process, and within a stable organisation new and junior team members look to more experienced ones to learn the ropes.  In a Change project, the new skills may not exist in the organisation (indeed that may be part of the problem that is being addressed).  This goes beyond training, it is learning on the job.  One key element of this is that these role models demonstrate that these behaviours work (and are safe, and part of the recipe for success).  If in doubt people copy what you do, rather than doing what you say, so wherever possible, you should model the new behaviours for them.

“I’m so proud to be voted as a number one role model by these young women. Of course though no-one knows more about “rolls” than I do.”  Dawn French

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Posted in Business Change, General | 2 Comments »

Resistance: I don’t have the skills

Monday, June 9th, 2008

The other day I posted a blog listing some of the reasons for resisting Change.  This is the second in series exploring those reasons. 

Today’s reason is people’s fear that they won’t have the necessary skills to operate / function in the new set-up.  The first thing to say is they may, of course, be exactly right.  It obviously depends on the degree and nature of the change.  Before you announce your programme, you need to have assessed what kind of training and support your team might need.  It needs to be appropriate to people’s preferred learning styles rather than a one size fits all  training session, and there may be the need for ongoing support.

You also need to be aware this can be as much about how people feel about their capabilities as their actual capability.  If you fail to address their feelings, you are likely to fail.

“What we can or cannot do, what we consider possible or impossible, is rarely a function of our true capability. It is more likely a function of our beliefs about who we are.”   Anthony Robbins

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Posted in Business Change | 2 Comments »

Resistance: Stepping into the Unknown

Thursday, June 5th, 2008

Yesterday I explained that there were many real reasons why people resist Change. I thought it might be interesting to explore these in a little more detail. So today, “Why standing still is never an option”.

If you think about it, the idea we can avoid Change is ludicrous. It is happening all around us all the time. Look in the mirror and you will probably notice the odd change or two; look in your wallet next time you fill up your car; turn on the TV and see what kind of shows are on today. Change really is a fact of Life and is avoidable.

However, and here is a key element, in order to feel safe, we need to feel in control. Control equals choice. So if I am able to choose not to do something, I must be in control and the world is a safe place!

When Cortes landed in South America, to claim it for Spain, he burnt his fleet of boats to ensure the men were ‘motivated’ to go forwards. Interestingly, if you ever need to lead a horse from a burning stable, you have to blindfold it to get it to move to safety. Burning platforms can work, but they have to be relevant and compelling for the individual concerned.

The Flight / Fight mechanism will keep us locked up and static, till our fear threshold is lowered enough that we can respond rationally to what is being asked of us, so quoting logical facts and figures before the emotional baggage is ditched is doomed to failure.

So step 1 in Change, is deal with the emotions, help people to feel safe.

“Nothing in life is to be feared. It is only to be understood.” Marie Curie
“Fear is a darkroom where negatives develop.” Usman B. Asif

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Posted in Business Change, Communication, Flight / Fight, Personal Change | 2 Comments »

I don’t want to..

Wednesday, June 4th, 2008

We have all heard about resistance to Change. It’s a bad thing… right? Not necessarily! And thinking that it is a sure way of running into trouble. Resistance essentially is all about communication. Either the behaviours are subtle forms of communication in themselves, or stem from incomplete or ineffective communication on the part of management. If you try to quash it, then I can almost guarantee that you will fail to implement your programme successfully. If you explore and deal with it in a respectful way, it might well ensure success.

Here is a list of some of the reasons for resisting Change, I feel that:-

  1. Moving into the unknown feels more dangerous than staying ‘still’ (of course the option to stay still is an illusion as change is going on all around us all the time)
  2. I don’t have the capabilities I will need in the new environment
  3. I don’t know how to ‘do’ the new behaviours (I have no map, no role models)
  4. I will be leaving behind something I value, either in terms of ideas, memories or relationships
  5. I am overwhelmed by it all emotionally and can’t cope with the additional workload
  6. It may not be such a good idea, and need more convincing
  7. You may have some hidden agenda that I don’t understand.
  8. I will somehow become a different person and my life will change in all sorts of unexpected and unwelcome ways
  9. That I may loose status or somehow be worse off
  10. It just won’t work!

There are all sorts of ways of handling these issues, but they all come down to communication, by which I mean doing a lot of listening before telling them why they are wrong!

I will be exploring this in more detail in forthcoming blogs

“Resistance is thought transformed into feeling. Change the thought that creates the resistance, and there is no more resistance.” Robert Conkin
“Supreme excellence consists in breaking the enemy’s resistance without fighting.” Sun Tzu


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Posted in Business Change, Hints, Tips & Techniques, Mini-Articles | No Comments »