What is the biggest impediment to you making a big change in the way you work? - SmartBrief

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What is the biggest impediment to you making a big change in the way you work?

The most recent SmartBrief on Leadership poll question: What is the biggest impediment to you making a big change in the way you work?

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Leadership

What is the biggest impediment to you making a big change in the way you work?

SmartBrief

SmartPulse — our weekly nonscientific reader poll in SmartBrief on Leadership — tracks feedback from more than 200,000 business leaders. We run the poll question each week in our newsletter.

 What is the biggest impediment to you making a big change in the way you work?

  • I like my routine and simply don’t want to change. 16.10%
  • I don’t know how to make the required changes. 9.52%
  • People around me refuse to change with me. 20.49%
  • I’m afraid to change. I might fail or things won’t go well. 6.82%
  • I don’t have the resources I need to make the change. 17.56%
  • I love change and always embrace it. 29.51%

Many obstacles to change. There isn’t a dominant reason for change resistance, apparently. Sometimes it’s our desire for routine or it’s others’ desires not to change. Whatever the reason for change resistance, identify it, give it a name, and compare the cost of not changing with what the value of the obstacle is. Many times we don’t do this math and we let inertia lead us to a bad outcome. For the 30% of you who love and embrace change, help those around you do the same. Share the techniques you use to overcome fear or routine inertia. Don’t push them to change — lead them to change. Also don’t let your love of change turn into change for the sake of change. Some of us love change too much and make changes that might not be necessary. Understand this is a risk for you 30% and could cause unnecessary turmoil for the 70% of your colleagues.

 

Mike Figliuolo is managing director of thoughtLEADERS. Before launching his own company, he worked at McKinsey & Co., Capital One and Scotts Miracle-Gro. He is a graduate of the U.S. Military Academy at West Point. He’s the author of three leadership books: “One Piece of Paper,” “Lead Inside the Box” and “The Elegant Pitch.”