One of the most common topics I cover with leaders when we talk about organisational change is about how to get everyone on board with what’s going to be different and keep disruption and worry for everyone involved to a minimum.
But what happens when a leader isn’t completely on board with a change and may not agree with the decision they need to roll out?
It’s something you have to address if you are to move forward for both you and your team. Quite simply, if you don’t come to terms with your own emotional responses, your true feelings will be very evident to everyone, however hard you try to cover it up (our bodies and minds don’t work separately). There won’t only be a ‘say-do gap’ but a ‘say-be gap’ too. So how can you work through this to find an approach that you feel comfortable with?
Here are some approaches that I know have worked before:
Work out what’s really (and honestly) niggling you about it? Here are some questions that might help…
Has a decision been made that you don’t feel you’ve had enough input into or time to consider and give feedback on? Do you feel that you’ve not been heard?
Do you dislike the person who has made the decision or feel that they’re not up to the job (and that you would have done it very differently)?
Will you need to have some difficult conversations that you don’t feel prepared for (or the time)?
Is this going to impact you personally and you’re not quite sure what that’s going to look like?
Are you anticipating the response you’re going to get from your teams or customers when it’s announced and you’re worried about that?
The answers to these questions might uncover some uncomfortable truths – conflict doesn’t sit well with you, you might have a need to be liked, or a lack of control can make you uneasy (which is unfortunately a big reality in today’s world). You might even be worried about getting things wrong, especially if it’s a big, high profile ‘thing’ that could have a reputational impact. Understanding what’s behind our responses can be really powerful and very useful.
Make sure you understand exactly why this change and your role in it. With so much on everyone’s plates right now and doing more with less, making the time to consider what’s really involved and have the right questions to ask can feel like a lot. But it’s essential if you can shape your own understanding, address your concerns and get clarity.
How does this sit with your values? There can often be tensions between our personal needs and those of the organisation we work for. One example might be that you want to have a better life balance and make sure you spend enough time with your family, when it’s clear your organisation is driving for more commitment (=time) from everyone. When this happens, we can get stuck. We feel we have to make a choice. Sometimes though there can be more of a ‘grey’ area that we might not be able to see immediately by ourselves.
Think forward. What will things look like when the change is implemented? What’s the likely reality versus your imagined concerns? What would happen if you were to step back (or even push back), either very vocally or by not actively getting involved? What would the impact be for you and your team?
We are human beings, not machines (and this includes leaders) and our emotional responses to situations can sometimes take us off track. So, how can you move forward? This is where working with a coach can be really valuable. In a safe space, you can start to get unstuck and explore what’s driving some of your responses. You can get unsnagged from your emotions and slow down the ‘pinballing’ from one thought to another and make progress.
If this sounds like something that could help you or your team, let me know.