{"id":20416,"date":"2017-06-28T14:30:26","date_gmt":"2017-06-28T14:30:26","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/smallbiztrends.com\/?p=451099"},"modified":"2017-06-28T14:30:26","modified_gmt":"2017-06-28T14:30:26","slug":"overcoming-resistance-to-change-5-lessons-learned-the-hard-way","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/businessnewsbox.com\/?p=20416","title":{"rendered":"Overcoming Resistance to Change: 5 Lessons Learned the Hard Way"},"content":{"rendered":"

Sponsored Post<\/strong> <\/p>\n

\"Overcoming<\/p>\n

Sooner or later as a business owner, you are going to want to change something in your company. You\u2019ll get excited by the potential, only problem is, the rest of your team may not be on board.<\/p>\n

The change you want to implement might be a new software system. Perhaps the change involves shifting around duties, making your team nervous. Whatever form of change is occurring, I\u2019ve learned a few techniques to help the transition and encourage the team to embrace change, not resist it.<\/p>\n

Here are five \u2018tried and tested\u2019 methods I\u2019ve learned the hard way about overcoming resistance to change in a small business:<\/p>\n

Explain the Big Picture<\/h3>\n

You know the big picture. You know what you want to accomplish and why. But have you stopped to convey the full picture to your team? If you have, have you done it recently?<\/p>\n

Sometimes we assume the big picture is obvious. However, it may not be obvious to them. Or, some team members may have forgotten because the last time you discussed the topic was months ago, and certain team members may not be in the loop at all.<\/p>\n

Gather your team together and lay out the vision you\u2019re trying to accomplish, and the reasons for the change.<\/p>\n

If everyone can see the end goal, they might just agree with it and get behind it. Give them the opportunity to ask questions so you can dispel misconceptions or unfounded fears.<\/p>\n

Show How Change Helps Team Members in Their Daily Work<\/h3>\n

Sometimes a change such as implementing new software or a new process may seem like more work for individual employees. Show team members how the change will make their jobs easier or better. Show them the \u201cwhat\u2019s in it for me\u201d at their level, through specific examples.<\/p>\n

Take the example of implementing shared cloud files and storage using a tool like Microsoft\u2019s OneDrive for Business<\/a>. At first glance, it may seem like more work for each individual to have to learn new software and processes. However, once implemented it can save them time because files are easier to find when they need one. They won\u2019t have to manually sync files from one device to another, if they work on multiple devices.<\/p>\n

In other words, be prepared with examples to explain how the change can help them — not just how it will help the company.<\/p>\n

Reassure that Jobs are not at Stake<\/h3>\n

Another reason employees may be resistant to change has to do with fear their job may be eliminated. This can especially be true if new technology automates and streamlines tasks.<\/p>\n

Job security is the seventh most important factor for employee happiness, a study<\/a> from Boston Consulting Group concludes.<\/p>\n

You\u2019d be amazed the crazy things employees can talk themselves into believing, in the absence of hearing anything different from you. They\u2019ll be dusting off resumes — even while you never mentioned or thought of anyone losing their jobs.<\/p>\n

Unless you intend to downsize (that\u2019s a different story), reassure your employees that new technology isn\u2019t about eliminating jobs. Instead it\u2019s about improving<\/i> job conditions and opportunities for everyone. Although, you may have to state that a couple of times for it to sink in.<\/p>\n

Give Positive Feedback<\/h3>\n

Have you ever heard of the \u201cPride System\u2019?<\/p>\n

The system is promoted by international business consultant Gregory Smith, author of \u201cBoosting Employee Engagement<\/a>.\u201d<\/p>\n

As part of the Pride System, Smith encourages creating a positive working environment with greater employee involvement through positive recognition.<\/p>\n

Praise and reward employees for taking even the smallest steps toward change. Rewards don\u2019t have to be money. In fact, they shouldn\u2019t be financial. Granting the primo parking spot for a week or simply giving public congratulations may do more for rewarding someone who embraces change than a cash bonus. Through positive feedback and rewards, you get your team engaged in wanting the change.<\/p>\n

Invoke Fun<\/h3>\n

Last but certainly not least, make the change process fun. Making it all about schedules and tasks and things they absolutely positively must do is, well, boring.<\/p>\n

Making change fun doesn\u2019t have to be challenging or expensive. Small things, like giving a new initiative a fun project name, can help.<\/p>\n

When you achieve an interim milestone, communicate that and throw an office party. \u00a0Or have someone create a 60-second video featuring your employees to commemorate it.<\/p>\n

Interject gamification, badges and awards for fun competition, too.<\/p>\n

Above all, strive to create a working environment in which change feels good and interjects a bit of excitement. And you\u2019ll find any resistance begins to evaporate and the team starts to embrace it.<\/p>\n

At the time of this writing, Anita Campbell is participating in the Microsoft Small Business Ambassador program.<\/i><\/p>\n

Working at Desk<\/a> Photo via Shutterstock<\/em><\/small><\/p>\n

This article, “Overcoming Resistance to Change: 5 Lessons Learned the Hard Way<\/a>” was first published on Small Business Trends<\/a><\/p>\n

\n<\/img><\/a> <\/img><\/a> <\/img><\/a> <\/img><\/a>\n<\/div>\n

\"\"\/<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Sponsored Post<\/strong> Change is sometimes welcome but often times resisted. Here’s some advice on overcoming resistance to change that comes from personal experiences.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":39,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[18,83],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-20416","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-management","category-sposored"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/businessnewsbox.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/20416","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/businessnewsbox.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/businessnewsbox.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/businessnewsbox.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/39"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/businessnewsbox.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=20416"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/businessnewsbox.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/20416\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/businessnewsbox.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=20416"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/businessnewsbox.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=20416"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/businessnewsbox.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=20416"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}