I ’ve been asked to give a lecture on change to a community centre in February, and I thought due to its importance, it needs to be discussed to entrepreneurs as they may come
across frequent and rapid changes that could affect their operations. This is why, this article comes to you with a full picture to understand change as an entrepreneur, as a person or from the perspective of an employee. So what is change and how can we overcome its resistance? Change is simply any situation that occurs in your organisation, or even your personal life, and may consequently affect your operations or your social activities. To illustrate this point, a change in legislations that may affect your business, with a recent example of VAT, a change of your staffing such as turn over e.g. resignations, layoffs, retirements … etc., a technological trend coming to the industry that you have to integrate, or changing the location or the nature of the business … etc. Therefore, change affects us all personally or professionally whether we like it or not, whether we are entrepreneurs, or just employees. Now, what happens to you and/or your team during the change? The answer is resistance… People have tendency towards their routine way of life, fear of the uncertain future, and panic of losing control of their lives towards an unknown thing. For example, if you decided to implement a new technology or a machine, the first worry amongst the team is that they may lose their jobs, or simple that they may need extra time to get trained on this machine, or perhaps anxiety at the location of the machine taking their private space in the company. On a personal manner, you don’t know
who your new neighbours when moving to your new home, and you’re anxious regarding the new electricity tariff, or sad that your grandma passed away. Once there is change, we all go through various phases, starting from:

Having a shock and denying the new
fact, as if I would deny that there is a new fee that is added on by burden, or simply I won’t believe that my grandma died.

Becoming angry at the change that occurred and doubting it, in a such way that staff would be angry at having a new manager whom they didn’t work before, or you would be angry at changing the location of the car park or a change of an optional module of your academic studies.

Accepting the change gradually, by trying the new situation, in which, I or you would try sleeping on the new bed for the first time, checking what the new director is going to do and say, or trying a new smart phone that you were forced to buy as a replacement for the old phone. We tend to give the new change a try, and would see how it may affect us positively and/or
negatively.

Finding a new meaning, making peace with the inner-self and then with the outside world. After getting angry at a new change,and deciding to try the new situation,employees at this stage will give reasons to why they were shifted to that place and give meaningful answers, we ought to practice the new machinery and say perhaps it would save us time, you would believe that the new competitor opening next door could become an opportunity rather than a threat.

Integrating with the new situation and motivating oneself and others is the last stage. It could be integrating with the aftermath of winning or losing a tender after spending a big cost and having a shock of happiness or sadness at the first stage. Here you have already got the rejection of the lost or the denial of winning your big prize i.e. the tender, and hence finding an opportunity and integrating with it through hiring or de-utilizing the extra resources.

Now that you understand change, and know the stages that you or anyone surrounding you especially your colleagues, subordinates, team members, and others may face, we will discuss some tools that may help you overcome the resistance personally or professionally. Kurt Lewin, a German-American psychologist introduced a vital model that is used until today in managing change. He basically said that in order to succeed, you have to work out change in three stages.

-Unfreeze
-Change
-Refreeze

Before introducing change, you have to determine what needs to be changed and understand the urgency of change and ensure there is some kind of support. Consequently communicating the message strategically to all whom will be involved or affected by the change and focusing on WIIFT aka What’s In It For Them. By doing so, and having the necessary interpersonal skills such as empathy, you will reduce the phases of resistance and fear, and win everybody to your side. Once the clear advantages have been communicated, and doubts and concerned were openly discussed, introduce the change by keeping your door open, because rumours may spread, stress levels may increase and productivity shall decrease. Enable everybody and give them opportunities to be a part of the process. Don’t forget to celebrate the short term successes loudly even with an appreciation or applause.

Now that you have changed what you wanted to change, refreeze the new systems and procedures in place, remove any barriers that may harm your new systems, and build the identity that will hold up the change. Think of the process as an ice cube that you would like to mould in a certain shape. Can you change it immediately, or you must leave it for a while to melt before you shape it and refreeze it? Sudden and uncommunicated changes may harm the operations and hence the business, even through a word of mouth that could go viral and impact us negatively. Another useful tool, is the force field analysis, search it online, and get a template and use it. This tool will allow you to outline the forces for the proposed change such as improving production, and meeting customers’ needs, and the forces against the change such as cost, time, environmental or social impact.

Put these forces in two horizontal and opposite directions, toward the middle of the change, and give every force a score of intensity and effect on your plans. Finally, calculate the total scores of both sides and foresee how the change may go. Brainstorming such forces for and against change with others, will give a broader perspective, and hopefully take your new plans of change into a thriving accomplishment.

CHANGE 101
Hussain Sharakhi
A renowned trainer and regional speaker
for more than 14 years. He specialises in
Soft & Social Skills, Sales & Marketing,
Blended Learning, Human Resources and Linguistics.