Overcoming Resistance to Change

Many people may resist change because they fear they will lose their jobs, status or position. It may be because they do not fully understand the purpose of change, or they may have a different perspective on the change than their management. “Individuals, groups, and organizations must be motivated to change. But if people perceive no performance gap or if they consider the gap unimportant, they will not have this motivation. Moreover, they will resist changes that others try to introduce,” Bateman and Zeithaml explained. Many times change for people at work

Resistance to change is an expected reaction of human nature. We are not accustomed to change, as it is possible to lead to failure; however, there are also ways to manage the resistance within the company.

Change needs leaders and managers, leaders must inspire people to take the brave step into the unknown, to define an inspiring vision, and to guide the employee on their journey. The president needs sponsor the change, map-out the stakeholders, shape a steering group to oversee the project, and lend support keep employees engaged. The president also needs to pick a project leader and manage, and recruit a project team with representatives from across the business. The president needs to meet with a team of supervisors from various stores and discuss the changes that are implemented. Meeting with a team of supervisors conveys that the company is confident about the change and that their input is needed and very much appreciated.

I define resistance as not wanting to change. For example a group member ordered by the courts to participate in so many group sessions. Resistance is a useful concept because it cannot be dealt with properly until the emotional force behind it is understood. It is good for group leaders to restate what each group member is saying in a way that will cause less resistance. Co-leaders can use metaphors as a way of talking about experiences that stimulate reframing, as communication to overcome client resistance. I think when clients are involved in a group setting that facilities change, client resistance is probably not far behind. All group leaders should create a safe environment that allows clients to explore their defenses and resistances

In his short story, A Rose for Emily, well-known American writer and Nobel Prize laureate, William Faulkner, narrates the consequences of people not changing with the times. He lived in the south when slavery was acceptable and includes this in many of his stories. Faulkner’s purpose is to emphasize to his audience that people must accept change and evolve or risk isolation and ultimately dying alone. Faulkner’s views on change are brought out effectively in “A Rose for Emily” through his use of setting, tone, and diction. This paper will explore these strategies used by Faulkner to convey to his audience the importance of being able to adapt to a dynamically changing world. It will also answer the question of whether or not Miss Emily

Leaders within a business need to be cognizant of the signs of change resistance and develop strategies to overcome them. Individuals are averse to change for four reasons: fear of loss of value, lack of understanding regarding the modification, belief change is not warranted, and an intolerance for change (Kotter, & Schlesinger, 2008). Comprehending and addressing these concerns are crucial steps between success or failure.

The organization must implement specific strategies to identify and resolve resistance to change. O Connor (1993) stated "In an organization, resistance is opposition or witholding of support for specific plans or ideas. It can either be intentional or unintentional, covert or overt" (p. 30). Employees will likely consider how change affects them personally and that may naturally cause some resistance. One of the most important things an organization can do to minimize resistance is to address these personal concerns. It is also important to identify any potential loss or gain that comes from implementing, or not implementing, the change initiative. Leaders

Change is inevitable in this world, how we handle it is what makes the difference. While most agree that change is typically a challenging issue for an organization it does not mean that is can not be accomplished with little to no upset. Be it a simple change or a major project there are strategies that can be used to make the change a positive experience for both sides of the change; but first an understanding of resistance to change must occur.

A lot of articles and research were done on why people resist changes and how managers can help employee to cope with these changes, some of these theories are

One of the biggest obstacles is resistance to change. People resist change because change disrupts habits, conflicts with certain personality types, cause a fear of failure, can have potentially negative impacts, can result in a potential for loss of power, and, when done too frequently, can exhaust employees. There may be key people who publicly support the change effort while silently undermining the planned changes. It is the management’s job to identify, understand, and remove these obstacles. (Kotter J. P.

It is in human nature to abhor boredom and predictability that result from daily routine .Yet , when it comes to making changes and venturing out of one ‘s comfort zone , most people will feel inclined to resist change, despite their prodigious desire to implement it .So why do we resist change ?

When people take risks they are willing to put themselves into situations that they can both lose or gain something valuable. The object can be both tangible and tangible. Uncertainty is when a person is unsure about a situation. An example of uncertainty is when a person is in doubt and not sure how to handle the situation. Risk and uncertainty are separate, but they are typically found within the same situation (McConnell, 2015).

Many people resist change because they fear the idea of coming out of their comfort zone and because “Change brings new choices that create uncertainty” (Heath & Heath, 2012, p. 53). People resist change because they dread the idea of not being able to adapt to new work requirements. According to Milhauser (2011), “people naturally resist anything that is outside of their control” (p. 4). As a result of this, they freeze and become worried that they may lose their job and/or colleagues when they hear the word change. When people have a good thing going for them, they are very reluctant to give it up. This is where self-interest comes into play. Someone’s ego can interfere with his/her ability to adapt to change. They might want to maintain

Employees who feel pushed out of their comfort zone may also resist change, due to the unfamiliarity of new implications or managers. The fear of uncertainties due to the lack of communication can also lead to resistance to change on an individual level. If employees are not informed of the needs of the change then the fear of the unknown can cause resistance.

To identify the key elements of the resistanceto change described in this situation, one may make use of the six Change Approaches of Kotter and Schlesinger.[1]The model prevents, minimizes or descreases resistance to change in organizations. According to Kotter and Schlesinger (1979), there are four reasons that why people resist change, three of which are applicable to this case: