The Dirty Dozen: 12 Faces of Resistance

Resistance, stalling, diverting, dragging your feet… all are common reactions to resisting change. Some resistance tactics are hard to detect, as they may be disguised as rational requests or be so subtle that they are barely discernible as resistance.

Being alert to resistance can help you address it – which means your change is both more likely to be implemented and less likely to take as long or require as much energy, time and resources.

	It May be a Form of Resistance When You Encounter:	What you might see:
1	Data Paralysis	Continual requests for more and more data. And then some more. And more…
2	Resource Constraints	Underfunding. Under-staffing. Inability to get the time and attention of the right people or resources.
3	Infusing Complexity	Continuing to add scope, difficulty, or other obstacles that stall or delay progress.
4	Insisting on Uniqueness	Repeated discussions about how this will not work around here. Lots of “Yes, but…”. Focusing on differences rather than areas of similarity.
5	Indifference	Always the last thing that commands time or attention. Delegating the work to lower and lower levels of the organization.
6	Bargaining	Asking for tradeoffs. Wanting to maintain the status quo with minor adjustments. Pleading for more time.
7	Confusion	Playing “dumb”. Not getting it. Using “I don’t understand.” as a reason to delay action.
8	Silence	Acting as if this may go away, if just ignored and given enough time.
9	Intellectualizing	Another way to add complexity – by making it a lesson in academics. Needing proof and research. Not moving forward without consulting the experts.
10	Moralizing	Placing blame outside oneself and on “those people”. Wanting to fix others to fix the problem without willingness to change first.
11	Compliance	Doing the bare minimum, often without energy, enthusiasm or real thought. Just going through the motions.
12	Reliance on Process and Procedure	Tying the effort up in bureaucratic process and red tape. Continual reference to the existing processes, policies and procedures and why they will not allow progress.

Note that most of these actions can also indicate a healthy response to a changing situation. For example, gathering data is a smart thing to do. A certain level of confusion is to be expected. It is perfectly logical to ask how the experts might approach this. However, you’ll need to be alert to the point at which any of these become a stalling technique.

Our natural tendency when faced with resistance is to push through it, to go faster, to force the issue. This only builds more resistance. For example, when someone is pushing against you, you tend to push back. As they increase the intensity, you do as well. Ultimately, they may be able to overpower you and win by force. It works well in arm wrestling – not so well in cases where you need to win people’s heads and hearts over.

Instead try a simple 3 step method:

Notice: Be alert to signs of resistance so that you can deal with it early.
Name: Discuss the resistance in a non-judgmental way.
Listen: Listen some more. Listen hard.

Here are some ways you can name it:

I feel as if we’ve lost momentum. What do you think?
I sense that you have some concerns about this. Tell me more.
I have noticed (fill in the blank). When that happens, we are unable to make the progress we need. Can you tell me how it looks from your perspective?

If you are like most people, you went through this list identifying all the ways those “other people” were resisting your initiatives, projects and new ideas. I challenge you to go back through the list with an eye toward your own resistance. In what ways are you avoiding a necessary or helpful change by your own personal resistance tactics?