Resistance to change is a natural phenomenon — it’s friction! When we want to make changes, we tend to resist that change and slip back to our old ways. Consider starting a diet or kicking off a project or sliding a book across a table — we want to return to our original state. How can you help your team overcome friction?
(1) Address sources of friction. Make sure you and your team have a clear destination and a data-driven assessment of your current position.
- What do you need to get done? Clearly lay out the activities you need to do to move from current state to future state.
- What does your team need? Survey your team to see what they need for resourcing and support and where they see resistance.
- Meet with stakeholders. Talk to the people that can support or resist your work to find out how you can work together to achieve (or alter!) your work.
(2) Continuously reduce friction with retrospectives. At regular intervals, look back on the work you have done to appreciate what you are doing well and what you can do to improve.
- More of… what you do well
- Less of… what can be done with fewer people or less often
- Start… what you have not yet tried
- Stop… what is not providing value
(3) Gratitude and appreciation reduce friction. We all appreciate when others acknowledge our work especially when we go the extra mile. Reduce friction by being grateful for the work of others 🤝 — we can go far when we work together. Take a moment weekly to thank a colleague.
Understand that static friction is greater than kinetic friction. This means it is harder to get change going than it is to keep it going.
- It’s harder to go back to school than it is to be in school.
- It’s harder to start a diet than to continuously watch what you eat.
- It’s harder to make an annual change to process than it is to regularly retro and adjust every sprint.
Understanding your environment when leading change can make a huge difference in change adoption. Increase your situational awareness by asking yourself these questions…
- what is your ecosystem expecting?
- are regulators part of the pressure to change?
- do your customers value your upcoming change?
- can your stakeholders articulate the “why”?
- will the teams bear the brunt and feel burned out?
- is your busy season about to start in your industry?
Before you move your team through the “why”, “what” and “how” of the change, be sure to take stock of what is happening around you to both help and hinder your efforts.
Blue Cairn 