Think about a time you had to convince someone to change the way they perform a task or behave. How did they react? Do you remember them disengaging? Did their body language change? Maybe they crossed their arms, frowned and leaned back. They most likely heard the first part of the information and immediately started to think about the consequences of the change while you were explaining the details. At that point it is generally too late. You have lost their attention. They are no longer listening.
I have made the mistake of starting a conversation by stating the desired outcome many times. I often even wrote it as the subject of meeting invitations. People walked into the meeting room already angry, carrying an invisible shield, ready to fight back before I started explaining the issue.
But after many trials and errors, after meeting change professionals, reading books, listening to podcasts on change management and positive psychology, I have discovered a powerful solution to avoid this scenario. It can be applied in many different situations but I will focus on process change management in this example.
1 – Avoid creating a feeling of fear or uncertainty
Our brains are wired to assess situations for danger. The information we receive verbally or visually travels first through our most primitive brain (reptilian) for a safety check. If a piece of information is classified as dangerous, the part of the brain that controls rational thinking (neocortex) will get switched off. Daniel Goleman in his book Emotional Intelligence names this phenomenon the Amygdala hijack. It is almost like a police checkpoint. If you fail, go directly to Jail. Do not pass Go. Do not collect $200.
Your duty as a change agent is to make sure the brain puts a SAFE label on the information passing through. This means keeping it in a state of certainty and familiarity. Do not start with the WHAT (what the change is) but instead start reassuring people about the good work they have been doing and get them to map the current process. This is a safe, known, familiar space. Use as many images and colours as you can, draw pictures, mind maps or diagrams because this part of the brain responds better to visual imagery.
If this goes well, you could also ask them to list all their current known issues and assure they will be addressed (this needs to be genuine of course).
2 – Create excitement and positive emotions
The second step is to feel what it would be like to live in the ideal world. Do not mention the desired state yet, which is between current and ideal, because it is too uncertain. The ideal state is fantasy therefore it is not realistic enough to cause fear.
By doing this, you are now using another part of the brain called the Limbic system, where emotions are controlled. Your mission is to create excitement and positive emotions for the limbic brain to tick the “Hell Yeah” box.
3 – List all actions to get to the desired outcome
The idea has now passed the limbic brain checkpoint, the person feels safe and excited about the future and the neocortex is ready for mental processing or rational thinking. This is when you plan actions to implement the change. Think about how you can bridge the gaps between the current state and ideal state. The actions must be specific, clear and have definite deadlines and ownership.
The three key steps to remember:
- Do not start a discussion with the desired outcome, start with safe and familiar concepts
- Get people excited about the ideal world, make them feel it
- Only once you have created safe positive emotions should you start discussing actions and solutions
I look forward to your comments and feedback on this post.