Guiding Principle: Challenge the Status Quo in a Persistent but Respectful Way
In Summary, This Principle Is Intended to:
Mashup these old sayings into one saying
Insanity is doing the same thing and expecting different results.
Your process is perfectly designed to get the results it is getting.
What got you here ain’t gonna get you there.
A Change will do you go (maybe more a song lyric than a saying)
The Future is NOW
Reinforce that solving problems and adding an increasing amount of value are keys to lasting success as a professional and as a business; this requires change.
Remind people that challenging something (creating awareness of the potential need to change) is the first step in a change journey.
Remind people that people hate change, so you must be persistent in efforts to influence changes to the status quo and instill new behaviors needed to succeed. And that choosing to be persistent doesn’t mean you failed to be heard the first time.
Keep in focus that you rarely encounter a situation where everyone who was part of establishing the status quo is entirely out of the picture. Therefore, there is some level of emotion tied to what things are done, how they are done, and why they are done the way they are done. You should be empathetic and respectful of the historical context as you help move people to the future. I also wrote about that here.
Rationale/Why this matters
In addition to the clichés I mentioned above, we have all heard
The world is evolving like never before
If you aren’t evolving, you are dying
Change is a necessary evil
Despite the wisdom and truth of the above clichés, they go against the natural instincts of humanity, which are
To survive
To be comfortable (mastery of a skill is a common form of comfort in the workplace)
To be liked by others in the group (avoiding tough conversations is a form of this in the workplace)
But please internalize this idea.
Discomfort with the truth doesn’t discount its accuracy or diminish its impacts.
So in a quickly evolving world, where change is inevitable, we should not be surprised that we must remind ourselves that we must get comfortable being uncomfortable. To do that, you must commit to
Focusing on why your job, your team, or your business exists
What problem does it solve, what impact does it make, or what value does it adds?
Challenging if the status quo that got you here will continue to lead to the same type and level of success in the future
Are we still solving the problem/delivering impact as well as we used to?
How has your world changed?
What threatens your future (new competitors, technologies, definition of success)?
How has the world of our customers (or employees) changed?
Being persistent in the challenges because resistance will be high since change disrupts our survival instincts leading to periods of discomfort and actions to try and avoid the change
Why are people going to resist?
What evidence/stories/examples will help them hear the uncomfortable truth?
What are the methods you can use to get a new truth out there?
Being respectful and empathetic because people are managing uncomfortable emotions like
Frustration with the change as they lose their expertise
Anger because their idea is no longer being good enough or
Fear because the results of the change are unknown
Sadness from the perception that the change will impact their ability to survive
Change is Hard, duh, which is why persistence is a key.
Telling someone the thing they need to do to survive must change is not typically well received. Being the one telling someone to change is uncomfortable, but it is what is required. Through time, repetition, and examples of success, the negative reactions give way to a willingness to try, which gives way to comfort, which gives way to advocacy. <I am sure there is a change model>
Persistence, with a side of empathy, is a key to moving yourself and others through these stages. Persistence is required and necessary when asking people to change because thoughtful and consistent reinforcements are the keys to systemically...
Moving from feeling ignored to being heard as the champion of the change
Moving people from “I don’t see the value” to “I think we can get to a better place, and this new way leads there.”
Moving behavior from “I don’t want to do hard things” or “this is what I am comfortable doing” to “I am gaining confidence in this new way” or “this isn’t really that bad.”
Adding to the difficulty in the change journey is that people are bombarded with communication, data, and stimulus from the second they wake up to the moment before their head hits the pillow, and I am not talking about work content. All this stimulus leads to noise, distraction, interruption, and lack of focus. Before you even begin to speak, people are focused on a hundred other things. So if you operate from an “I told them, I shouldn’t have to tell them again mindset.” You will lose.
You must embrace the mentality of
tell ‘em what you are going to tell ‘em, tell ‘em, tell ‘em what you told ‘em. (then rinse and repeat)
What types of persistence are we talking about
Regularly challenge the status quo, looking for ways to make things better
People are comfortable with the way things are; no one is looking to change for change sake
Comfort leads to complacency so keep pushing on the concept that change is necessary
Position it as a tactic for future survival not a sign that the past was a failure
Regularly share why the change matters, what the change is, and what success looks like
Use multiple methods, media types, and voices.
Don’t stop until people stop talking about the new thing as a change.
Building a support system that is continuously and comfortably available to help and guide as the status quo is being challenged and changed
Helpful training, communications, and support resources available on-demand and in the flow of the work that provides comfort as people move towards competence and then mastery of the new way
Celebrating success as people move along the journey but also creating feedback loops to help correct poor behavior, address poor attitudes, and improve poor results
Shout loud and proud when you are winning and showcase the winners publicly
Be quick to privately silence negative attitudes, public resistance, or poor execution; focusing on patterns of behavior, not a single incident (we all have bad days)
Reminding yourself that the change is essential for the survival of your business (or team) and that you are doing it for the right reasons
Make sure you are doing it for the right reasons.
Find a support network of people who will hold you accountable for following through and for pushing back on bad ideas.
One more word on persistence. Persistence is also important because people have been conditioned to wait out the call to change until the status quo returns. This is true; I have seen it my whole career; most of the time, most change efforts go away if people just wait long enough. So that is what people do… resist and try to wait it out. Persistence in its many forms helps drive appreciation for the need to change and adopt the behaviors required to change, leading to more successful change.
R-E-S-P-E-C-T
The other component of change management is appreciating the people side of challenging the status quo. There is a guiding principle around this that you can read here, Don’t Be A Jerk and If You Are a Jerk, Apologize.
So if you want more info about how to challenge without being a jerk, check it out. But real quick asking people to change is emotional.
The wisest reaction to another person’s emotions is not your own emotions; it's empathy.
So when asking people to change, be empathetic and spend more time than you want to spend paying attention to the relational aspects (people side) of the change. You will know you are succeeding when you are uncomfortable at the amount of time you are spending caring about the people the change impacts.
Asking people to change is not the time to leverage role power (power given to you by your role in the business) it is the time to leverage your relationships and embrace humanity.
Conclusion
You must change to survive. Change is hard. People (businesses) hate doing hard things, so they are avoided until the latest possible moment. These factors combine to be why 70% of change initiatives fail (common data point, even if it is disputed).
But it doesn’t have to be that way. Bold and courageous leaders who embrace their duty to be consistently looking towards the future and making the adjustments that lead towards a better future are uniquely positioned to deliver better outcomes/more impact in a sustainable way.
The key to succeeding more often than you fail is to get better at Challenging the Status Quo in a Persistent but Respectful Way.
Bonus Insight: Businesses are made up of … people. Which means they tend to take on the same characteristics as people (focused on survival, avoiding discomfort, desire to be liked). So change isn’t just hard for the people; it’s hard for the business. Don’t underestimate the powerful and likely invisible undercurrent of institutional complacency and actions designed to keep comfort high. These preferences are contributing factors to the status quo that has led to the need for change in the first place.
Want to know more about change. My go-to model is ADKAR by Prosci, I am not a compensated endorser or a certified professional, but these resources are an excellent foundation.