Why They Don't Want What You Want - And How To Use It To Your Advantage

We often hear our clients complain about how resistance is a bad thing and constantly gets in the way of their successful change efforts - in fact, that's why many of them hire us in the first place! "Why can't he (or those people) just accept it and get on board?" While it can be painful at times when you find yourself on the receiving end of someone's resistance to change, at Plus Delta Consulting we actually feel that resistance can be a GOOD thing.

So what exactly is resistance, and why do so many people have a negative impression of it? Resistance can present itself in many ways. People resist change through passive/aggressive tendencies and quiet forms of conflict avoidance. They also resist change through more explicit behaviors and statements that run contrary to the project's objectives. Some individuals even resist change through more subtle acts of sabotage that can damage the credibility and future of any change effort. According to one dictionary, resistance can be defined simply as a force that opposes or retards motion. When that "motion" is change - the act or process of altering something and replacing it with another - that resistance can present a

Why They Don't Want What You Want continued here:

serious problem for the longer-term success of a change initiative.

With that said, we tend to look at resistance as energy that simply isn't directed the same way as your change effort. That doesn't make it a bad thing though. In fact, resistance can be quite useful since it serves as a general indicator of something you may have missed or simply overlooked in designing your initiative. The trick is to listen to "resistors" without turning a deaf ear to find out what they are most concerned about and determine whether or not their concerns are your concerns too.

According to Maurer (2002), resistance actually occurs at three different levels. The first level is a rational response based on a lack of understanding - I don't get it! It's possible that resistors simply need more information to understand what the upcoming changes are all about. The good news is that most of the communication tools we have available to us, including email and all-hands presentations, among others, all work quite well to help people gain a better understanding of the changes. The bad news is that most resistance occurs at a deeper level, so these common tools can have limited effects.

The second level of resistance is not about understanding. Level 2 resistors understand exactly what is happening, and that is why they react negatively to the changes - I don't like it! Level 2 resistance is based on a fear-based fight/flight response that is much more emotional than Level 1 resistance. It's an instinctive reaction to protect oneself when being threatened, so one more company-wide email or PowerPoint presentation to all staff is not likely to help. Level 2 resistors need more direct communication in order to get excited about the possibilities the changes represent. They need to voice their concerns and feel like they are being heard before they accept what is changing.

Level 3 resistance often has very little to do with the change itself. Rather, it is often based on a lack of trust between the resistor and the project leader/change agent - I don't trust you! Since this resistance tends to be an individual reaction based on previous experiences or pre-existing beliefs, it can require a much more personalized approach to address it. Creating opportunities for one-on-one dialogue with a Level 3 resistor may be the only way to fully understand what he/she is resisting. If this direct approach doesn't work though, enlist the help of someone else right away. You might have inadvertently triggered a hot button for the resistor, so rather than do more harm it is often best to remove yourself from the process and let someone else get to the bottom of it.

People need to actively participate in the change process to overcome their questions or fears. This is especially true in the early stages of a change initiative when the changes are just being designed, so don't just give people a few hours of training at the end of the project and assume that they will accept the changes that you have designed without them. Identify and articulate the differences between the current and future states early on in the change process and share your perceived benefits for the change with anyone who might be impacted. Paint a more complete picture of what the intended results will look like and communicate why the changes are important for the ongoing success of the organization as well. This will help employees participate in both the design and implementation phases of the project because they will be better able to engage in the change process and share their thoughts and concerns with you in a more productive manner.

Can Plus Delta help you better leverage resistance to your advantage? To learn how to improve performance through Positive Changesm, give us a call at (866) PLS-DLTA or send an email to info@plusdelta.net. You can also visit the Change Management page of our website for more information about how we have helped other organizations overcome their resistance to change.

Note: This feature was originally published and distributed in Plus Delta Consulting's e-newsletter in September 2007.