Recognizing Change Resistance by Observing Behaviors
Resistance to change is a lack of willingness to adapt to altered circumstances or new ways of doing things. Change resistance is a natural reaction and we all resist change at one time or another.
Change affects people’s behaviors and mindsets. Think of the mindsets as the thought patterns and feelings associated with change while the behaviors are about how people act. The way you think will influence how you act and ultimately, what you do.
Change often causes fear, anxiety, and stress. People spend a lot of time worrying about what will go wrong and focus on the worst-case scenario. Change can feel uncomfortable because you are dealing with new and uncertain situations. It is also quite common to feel like you have no control over the situation.
You can often recognize change resistance by watching how people behave. There are several behaviors that are typical when people fear change.
Avoidance: One common reaction is that people avoid or withdraw from others. They want to lay low and hide in their proverbial cave. They feel like if they avoid the change, it might just go away. If you’re dealing with momentous change, this is a losing strategy.
Automatic Resistance: These are the people who put up walls, render excuses and find ways to make it difficult for others to change. The root cause of this resistance is often fear. These are the individuals who view the change as a threat.
Extreme Emotional Reactions: Emotional outbursts are quite common in these situations…for example, a person snaps at you for no reason when you ask a question or reacts in anger when it is not appropriate.
Spreading Fake News: During extreme change, it is common for people to try to fill the information void by making up their own stories and even spreading rumors rather than focusing on getting and sharing the facts.
Sabotage: Finally, it is common to see people sabotaging themselves and the change by making poor decisions or engaging in negative behaviors like spreading rumors or taking actions that maintain the old way of doing things.
What other behaviors have you observed when people are actively resisting change?