Skip to Main Content

BHT Thrive: The future's uncertain

BHT Thrive > The future's uncertain

Accept the future is uncertain

Turmoil, fear and stress come from uncertainty. When people are stressed and anxious, it is important to create a shared, safe space to keep thinking and to maintain and develop relationships with colleagues.

The psychology of change

Fisher's Change Curve

Change is a process, not an event and something we all experience individually. It is likely that we will experience all or most of the emotions in the change curve and can cycle back and forth within it. The change curve is a useful tool to recognise how you are feeling and also how other team members are feeling and who may benefit from a little additional support to help them move through to the more positive emotions

To view full size: right click mouse > open image in new tab

Circles of concern, influence and control

Stephen Covey

Covey distinguishes between proactive people – who focus on what they can do and can influence – and reactive people who focus their energy on things beyond their control. When we focus on those things outside of our control, we are wasting time and energy as we know we cannot do anything to change it. It is therefore more useful and productive to focus on the things we can control or influence.

When you are feeling stressed or unsure, consider:

  • What do I have no control over?
  • Where am I using my energy ineffectively at the moment?
  • What am I in control of?
  • How effectively am I focussing my energy in those areas?
  • What else could I take control of? How might I do that?

Pyramids of resistance

Timothy Galpin

Resistance to change is a normal reaction linked to the perceived loss of control. Galpin identified three level of resistance: (1) not knowing – this is the base level and represents employees’ lack of knowledge and associated information about the integration process (2) not able – this middle level represents employees’ inability to perform the tasks required (3) not willing – this is the top level and represents employee’s reluctance to make the change happen.

To view full size: right click mouse > open image in new tab

This diagram shows the 3 levels of resistance and how best to overcomes this resistance at each level on the right hand side. For example, people may resist change due to a fear of 'not knowing'. By communicating with the whole team and involving them in the process, they will likely feel more comfortable and therefore be more likely to engage positively with the changes.