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In the end, resistance to change is futile. When time and again we are reminded that the pain we are feeling has not subsided and the data hasn’t improved, we are finally able to admit the truth of the situation.
For leaders, this may be a low moment. You recognise that something is holding you back. While you’re working hard, you’re not getting very far. Your reassurance to the board that poor numbers are just a blip is increasingly untenable.
Fundamentally, at this stage of the change journey, there is a recognition that you can’t solve these problems on your own. It’s natural, at this moment, to feel injustice. You may feel hard done by as the promised rewards never quite materialise.
In this article, the fourth in our change series, we are at the ‘Overcoming Resistance’ step in the Complete Step Change Wheel.
As a reminder, the Complete Step Change Wheel has four phases each with three steps – giving us 12 steps in the leaders’ journey. The four phases correspond to the process of human development – waking up, owning up, growing up and showing up or Discover, Decide, Develop, Deliver. Each stage builds on the last, helping you overcome obstacles to help you deliver at a new level. By understanding where you are on the wheel and what steps you need to take you can more effectively move your way through the developmental framework at greater pace.
Our attention moves from the outside to the inside
At this step in the change journey – the first in the ‘Decide’ phase – we finally start to take ownership of the situation. Step four is sometimes referred to as ‘the long dark night’. It’s a metaphor for the darkness that precedes the emergence of a new day.
The only way to progress from step four to step five is to recognise that the narrative we are running isn’t getting us anywhere. Curiosity starts to emerge as does an openness to what the future might hold.
This openness is what sets apart great athletes as much as great CEOs. An exceptional champion is open, willing to question everything and constantly push for better.
That’s not to say that all doubts have gone. However, to move forwards we need to let go of that doubt and look forward to what lies ahead. It’s perfectly normal to have mixed emotions. Embracing these emotions and having faith that we can genuinely overcome our resistance is critical to any change in direction.
What makes us resistant to change?
One of reasons it can be so hard for us to change is because, as business leaders, we are addicted to ‘doing’ – or the IT dimension, as we call it. It not only dominates the working day, but it also dominates our view of change.
But why is addiction to ‘doing’ such a problem? If a leader is already successful, why should they bother changing anything? Such success can perpetuate or cement the expert mindset of step 3 in the change journey. Those leaders will likely feel that they have already ‘made it’.
However, just continuing to operate ‘business as usual’ is also no longer enough. We cannot rest on our laurels. In an accelerating world that is changing exponentially, we need to change to be able to thrive in an increasingly complex operating environment.
Our ability to make that necessary change – and ultimately our happiness too – requires turning to the ‘I’ and ‘WE’ phenomenon, and that means connecting with our interior.
Coaching to connect to ‘I’
Unsurprisingly, given most leaders are dominated by ‘doing’, focusing on our inner selves is not always easy and is most helpfully done with the right coach. The right coach will understand the change journey and how to navigate the crucial transitions between the steps. Coaching can help rebalance the ‘I’, ‘WE’ and ‘IT’ dimensions in our life – most often helping to reduce our addiction to doing and explore our understand of ourselves and our relationships.
At this step of the change journey, coaching conversations should focus on:
- What could be holding me back?
- Have I been able to fully let go of what’s holding me back?
- Do I have the curiosity to move forward?
- What will help me move faster?
Getting clarity on these important questions can nudge you further and further forward to step five in the change journey. Step five is one of the most important moments on the entire journey … but more of that in the next article.
In the meantime, you can read about all of the 12 steps in the Complete Change Wheel in Dr Alan Watkins’ book, Step Change: The Leader’s Journey.
