I was exercising the other day when my calf muscle cramped.
For a few excruciating moments, it seemed like my calf muscle had a mind of its own.
It seemed to want to get tighter and tighter.
This concerned me (it hurt too). It made me tense. Anxious. And focused on making my calf relax. But, the harder I worked on making the calf relax the tighter it became. Try as I might, I couldn’t force my calf to relax.
It’s the same with resistance to change.
Resistance in the organization is like a cramp in the calf. It’s painful. You want it to stop. And, you do things to make it go away.
But, the more you try to force resistance to stop – the more entrenched it becomes.
So, what can a cramp in the leg teach us about dealing with resistance to change?
The first thing is to realize that the resistance isn’t wrong.
It’s a natural reaction. Like a cramp, it’s a protective mechanism. And if you start acting as if it were wrong – it will tighten up even more.
Breathe and lean back.
Instead of focusing in on the cramp/resistance, take some long slow breathes and psychologically lean back. This will take mindfulness, as your natural tendency will be to zoom in and target the resistance. Don’t. Take a few moments to settle yourself. Breathe.
Create a receptive environment.
It does no good for a leg cramp if the rest of your body gets tense. The more your body relaxes around the cramp, the more you create a receptive physiological environment into which the cramp can let go.
In your organization, creating a receptive environment means listening. Real listening that is curious, open, and interested in other peoples’ perspectives and experiences. Through listening you will learn much and be able to diffuse unfounded fears, correct misinformation, and address legitimate concerns.
Allow time.
The paradox of leading change is that you must create a sense of urgency – in order to motivate action. But, if that urgency meets with resistance, then you must act in ways that release (not repress) the resistance.
The good news is that most people just need the time it takes for you to listen to them, in order to let go of their exaggerated fears and refocus on making a positive contribution.
Okay, here are some questions to help you apply this idea:
1. Where are there cramps in your organization?
2. How have you been dealing with them?
3. What will help you take psychologically lean back? (Hint: breathing is part of this).
4. When will you set time to listen with a curious, open, and interested attitude?
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