The one common theme that we face in modern business is the necessity for change. It’s painful. It’s emotional. It sucks. The reality of a situation we no longer can control often leads us to do foolish things in a desperate attempt to clutch to the status quo. We revolt, we resist, and we pay dearly for doing so.
My friend and fellow HR blogger Trish McFarlane recently pointed out that I’m a storyteller. I’ve found that it’s the best way to convey even the simplest concepts. And since I’ve had such a bizarre life (wrestling a luggage thief to the ground this past week, for example), I have an endless supply of tales from my own misadventures. This is one such story.
As a child growing up in suburban Wisconsin, I was a barely tamed animal of sinew, dirt and boundless energy. It was not unusual to spot my beanpole frame loping around the neighborhood with a goofy grin and magnetic attraction to trouble. Shocking, I know.
The steep hill behind our cul-de-sac was indisputably our domain. Neighborhood kids waged Lord of the Flies-like battles for survival, adventuring without regard to health or safety. We reigned supreme over the vast expanse of scrub, earth and rock. It was heaven.
Imagine our surprise one day when we awoke to the roar of massive earthmoving machines. These monsters were apparently sanctioned by the city – without our prior consent, I might add – with an alleged charter of new road construction. Giant belches of smoke emitted from their angry silver mouths as these hacks tore a destructive course through our pristine landscape.
We were not happy.
Being industrious little cretins, we waited until dusk and emerged like rats as the giant yellow tractors slept off a hard day’s work. Circling in search of purchase, we pondered how we might let our displeasure be known. But where was the weakness? How could a filthy crew of 80-pound weaklings bring the beast down? Then it hit us.
The tires.
Intoxicated by the allure of civil disobedience, we broke off branches and approached the nozzles on each of the behemoth wheels. Pushing down, we liberated them of air, each sighing loudly in apparent relief and gratitude. It took an hour all told and we stood back to admire our handiwork.
Presumably victorious, we patted each other on the back in hearty congratulations.  In our mind’s eye we imagined a head-scratching foreman bewildered by what had possibly occurred, eventually acknowledging defeat and packing up his supersized toy box and going home. That night we slept the sleep of the cunning.
The door pounding came early to the neighborhood and our stoic collective folded like a cheap lawn chair. Confidences were compromised as six sobbing boys bent under the pressure of interrogation. “Mark did it” echoed throughout the neighborhood. Their unplanned collaboration sealed my fate.
I’d like to tell you I opened the door with a, “What took you so long?” air of indifference. I didn’t. I was scared and my overactive imagination struggled to settle on how punishment would be doled. Public flogging? … a live burial in the fresh pavement as a cautionary tale to other boys? The road crew was steaming and anything seemed possible.
The actual punishment was brilliant in it’s simplicity.
I was to take a bike pump and refill the tires by hand.
My initial thought was, “That’s it?? No sweat.” It took me two full days. My little arms were exhausted and I later learned that I’d really only filled them halfway. The foreman eventually took pity on me and had a generator finish the job. I had spent nearly twenty hours pumping that handle up and down. My thought the entire time? Man, was I stupid to think this half-baked plan would work.
And that’s why resistance hurts. We think we can hold on to the way things were as opposed to finding ways to accept the way things will be. It’s a tough lesson and one we’ve all learned at some point in our lives.
Do you have an example of the futility of resistance? How do you get through moments of change? How did you get punished when you fought the power? Share your thoughts below and let’s keep the conversation going.
6 Comments
Brilliant. Childhood stories tell so many things so well. Cheers…
We all resist in our own way. I typically go with the flow, but if it is something I don’t think is right, a change that is just for change sake or something that will cause resistance with no actual value; then I usually resist in the right way.
Change is tough, but having the ability to grow is even worse!
I think that with most corporations, the individual resistances to change which we all carry to some degree gets amplified. Most corporations I’ve had the experience of working in, are incredibly change resistant.
Great story and great lesson Mark! I’ve featured your post in my weekly Rainmaker ‘Fab Five’ blog picks of the week (found here: http://www.maximizepossibility.com/employee_retention/2010/03/the-rainmaker-fab-five-blog-picks-of-the-week-1.html) to help my readers who might be struggling with change.
Be well!
Chris Young
@Craig James – Thanks Craig. Glad you enjoyed it.
@BenjaminMcCall – You hit on a good point. What is the value of change? Do we all understand the destination and appreciate how the change is going to get us closer?
@DC Jobs – Do you think this is simply human nature, or is there something that causes collective resistance at the corporate level?
@Chris Young – Thanks for including us Chris. We’re honored!
Mark, Great story, thanks for sharing!
I do a lot of college recruiting and find myself sometimes resisting the overdependence on technology in recruiting. I am constantly harping on the students trying to get a job about “the little things,” like really reading their resumes, not just relying on spell check (Do you know how many resumes I get asking me for a job in Pubic Accounting?). I want them to do old-fashioned networking and targeted cover letters, and not just blast their resume out to 300 job boards and postings.
Well, the other night I was giving my speech at a college and I made a comment about making sure you do a phone interview from a land line, not a cell phone, so you have good reception. And one of the students raises his hands and asks “What if we don’t have a land line?” So I said, “Oh, OK, how many of you only have cell phones?” and everyone except the teacher raised their hand! Wow, was I embarrassed. It was a good reminder that some things have changed – permanently, and there’s no point in fighting it!
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[...] The art of storytelling is a very social and useful tool not only in the HR profession but also in life. Mark Stelzner provides us insight using his storytelling skills while providing us a nice dose of reality with Change Hurts. Resistance Hurts More. [...]
[...] Mark Stelzner’s cautionary tale from childhood Change Hurts. Resistance Hurts More. [...]