Intersections Thirteenth Edition - Insights #1

If Change is the Nature of Life...?

​If change is the nature of life, both personal and organizational, then why is it our nature to resist change so vigorously? Over the years, my micro-view from having been involved in mergers and acquisitions, new product distribution, design and development, and enterprise redesign, is that there are two opposing forces at work within the human psyche.
If you are part of the leadership that is implementing the change in an organization, you may favor it, but if you are on the receiving end of the change, fear may make you resistant. In some cases, fear and favor reside in equal measures, no matter what side of the equation you are on. Knowing that without change, atrophy sets in, intellectually we accept change but hope it will happen to others and not to us.
George Bernard Shaw stated, “Progress is impossible without change and if you can’t change your mind, then you can’t change anything.”
So the question is how to address organizational change thoughtfully and favorably alter the minds of people that are resistant. Click here to find out how.