Organization Change & the Negativity Trap

Organizational change is ever-present in today’s work environment. When change occurs, we humans tend to fall into a set of predictable thinking errors or behaviours that limit our ability to face new challenges with confidence. In my training and coaching work with dozens groups of employees and leaders in changing organizations, I have identified some of these key errors and have labelled them ‘traps’. These traps of the mind and heart work against us both professionally and personally. 

One of the most debilitating traps that employees fall into when significant changes in an organization take place is the trap of Negativity. Typically, negativity is extremely contagious and its symptoms spread very quickly in the workplace. I have yet to see an employee that will not acknowledge that he or she has fallen into this trap at some point!

Symptoms of the Negativity Trap

When we are in the grip of the Negativity trap we might experience any or all of the following: resistance; doubting management’s agenda, motives and integrity; engaging in rumours, bitterness or complaining;  low morale and displays of anger; low motivation, low productivity; feeling victimized.

Why it happens

Three main reasons contribute to the creation of the Negativity Trap.

First, we humans don’t do well with any change initiated by others. Such imposed change chips away at our need to have control over our lives. It also robs us of the processes of contemplation and preparation, which are so crucial to a successful change process.

Second, human nature makes it difficult for us to abruptly leave one way of being and doing and immediately embark on a new path. We need time to psychologically adjust to the change, often even mourning the loss.  We also tend to idealize ‘what was’ and the ‘new’ never seems to measure up to the old ideal.

Third, management typically is ill equipped to understand the people-side of the change and falls into its own set of predictable traps. Most management teams in changing organizations do a miserable job at managing the human side of change. They neglect to communicate in a way that builds credibility. They push too hard for people to ‘get on with the program’. They don’t provide guidance… and the list goes on.

What to do

As a manager dealing with employee negativity, here are four key steps to take:

Get educated about people and change. Read books. Get training on the topic so that you can lead powerfully.

Allow your people to express their mourning and to take time to adjust. If you do so, negativity will significantly decrease.

Communicate honestly and frequently. Tell them what you know (many times) and be honest about what you don’t know. This will increase a sense of control for your people and establish trust.

Hold people accountable when the negativity gets out of hand. Don’t procrastinate when you see a vortex of negativity emerge.

As an employee experiencing the trap of negativity, do the following:

Ask yourself over which aspect of the changes you do have control or influence. Focus on those each and every day and the negativity will ease up.

Remind yourself – even if this is hard to do – that if you don’t like the way things are going you can always leave this job. Keep your resume up to date.

Find opportunities for self-development within the change – ways to gain new skills, recognition and experience.

Remove yourself from the vicinity of others who are vortexes of negativity – – beware of getting affected by their presence and attitude.

With the above suggestions I have barely scratched the surface of this most crucial challenge. A goal for every person in today’s workplace should be to become change-resilient. Without such resiliency we become victims of the change rather than engaged contributors. When we turn ourselves into victims brewing in negativity, our vitality is compromised and with it our creativity and enthusiasm. The journey to change-resilience is complex, but worth every effort.

Submitted by Sharon Bar-David, LLB MSW