Navigating Yourself & Your Team through Change

Know this… The future you – the one who has already faced their fears and stepped into the new chapter – is rooting for you today. 

The Evolve Co.

Change is a part of life that none of us can avoid. Our lives and careers are constantly moving us from one place to another; sometimes the changes are gradual and subtle, other times they hit us like a tidal wave, and there is a marked difference between the changes we choose and the ones we don’t, aka the curve balls.

The changes that we choose we are driven towards with gumption. There’s often still some level of anticipation in there yes, but the calling to change is more appealing than staying where we are. As such, our starting point is one of; ‘I need to walk through this door, and therefore I will make the best of whatever is on the other side.’

It would be a lot easier if all change we and our teams faced were of our choosing. The reality is though, with the need to react to an ever-evolving world, that change too often feels as though it’s happening to us, throwing us into a state of shock, denial and resistance.

The cool brain science behind change

Human beings are hardwired to resist change at all costs. This is because it involves taking a step into the unknown and that spells danger. If we can’t see the way ahead, our threat response is triggered, bypassing the prefrontal cortex (which controls analytical thinking and decision making), and throwing us into a cycle of ‘I feel fear, therefore there must be something to fear’. This will often lead to increases in feelings of helplessness and trepidation.

If you’re gearing up to support your team though change, it’s vital that you begin by doing all you can to help the threat response stand down. Once our brains can see the way ahead and, even better, a rainbow at the end of the road, our prefrontal cortex regains the reins to allow us to take helpful and self-affirming action.

At the same time, the motivation centres inside our brains are engaged to move us forward and utilise our most valuable resources – head space, energy and action – to get busy building the new.

Where do I start?

#1 Reframe Fear as Information

The first place to start is to check in with how you’re doing:

  • How are you currently perceiving, and therefore experiencing, this change?
  • On a scale of 1-10 (1 being low, 10 being high), how would you rate how optimistic you feel about the way ahead?

If you sense resistance in your responses, try doing one thing every day that helps you to find a sense of meaning and purpose in this change. If we are to help our teams see the light at the end of the tunnel, we have to find the light for ourselves first. Keep looking long enough and you will find something that you can be hopeful about.

#2 Make them feel heard

When we feel safe the threat response has no need to kick in. Even in times of uncertainty, there is a lot that can be done to help your people to feel looked after. If you’re not sure what they need, ask them, and then invite them to help you to put these things into place.

For instance, could a weekly cuppa and catch up to explore how people are doing be worth considering? It’s a great opportunity to focus as a team on the controllables.

More than anything, human beings gain safety from feeling heard and valued, two things you can give them even when the future is hazy.

#3 Put them in the driving seat

One way to shift people’s mindset away from focusing on what they fear is to get them busy taking action. There comes a point when thinking about the problem is no longer useful, we must act, and by doing so, instantly gain a sense of agency over the situation, satisfying our need to have some sense of control.

So, when it comes to the change you’re facing with your team, why not give them an element of this process to own? Afterall, our perspective upon a situation depends on the role that we are playing and therefore the angle we are looking at it from.

#4 Want it more

At Evolve, we believe that learning to manage our fears and step outside of our comfort zones is the most important life and career defining skill we can build.

What can you do to help your team manage their emotional response to change and channel fear into a more helpful energy of excitement?

Is this change an opportunity to start a conversation around conquering comfort zones? Could you organise an event as a team to work on supporting each other to do and achieve more? Check out Team Evolve’s recent fireside chat on this very topic for some food for thought:

All changes have their own complexities and nuances. Some will be harder and take longer to navigate than others. As a Leader, it’s your role to do what you can to help yourself and the people you lead to feel safe and excited about change. The rest is up to each individual to decide how they will respond.

Team Evolve are helping organisations across the UK to navigate through periods of change. To talk to us about your team’s goals, get in touch via [email protected].

The Evolve Company - Coaching in Hampshire

Team Evolve