What’s in it for me? vs Give it to me Straight!

Change is never easy. We’ve experienced more change than we bargained for these past two years. We know that we will adapt and will eventually come out stronger, but that doesn’t make it any easier. It is human nature that when change occurs, our first reaction to change is asking ourselves “how will this affect me”? And simultaneously, we cross our fingers and hope that the change will positively affect us; maybe even making our lives a little easier. However, despite the outcome of change there are always going to be growing pains.

The traditional change management advice to help ease those growing pains is to answer the question "What's in it for me". So how do we brace ourselves and our teams for the changes that may not result in a positive outcome?

Perhaps, when you force the outcome to be seen as positive by spinning the benefits, it may not be received as intended.

Let’s take the topic of returning to the office, specifically relating to those who working from home has benefited – caregivers, people with a long commute, people with disabilities, the list goes on. Despite the benefits touted by leaders about returning to the office, there’s a large group of people who feel that there are more drawbacks than value adds. We can spin the perks as much as we want, but what we end up doing is gaslighting our people and creating an environment where their real-life needs don’t feel heard.

So how should we approach the situation when change may not result in a positive outcome?

Call it what it is. By authentically validating their experience and showing empathy, you will create a connection of trust with your team and open up a dialogue on how you can support them without compromising the change. Not only that, you are helping build your team’s tolerance for change. When you’re meeting your team where they are at, you allow for the opportunity for people to get used to the new environment, which will help with the rest of the growing pains throughout the change. 

The first rule of change management is to treat people like brilliant rational people. Making-up benefits may end up backfiring on you and your team. Treat and respect your team and don't avoid the negative. Embrace the change by acknowledging and empathizing with the real-world effects of change and your team will appreciate your integrity and humanity in a hard situation.

For more information on assessing your team’s readiness for Returning to Work, click here.