When You’re Rejected for the Changes You Were Hired to Create

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I was giving a speech about resistance to change. A woman in the audience put her hand up. She introduced herself and then asked, “What if I’m the change that people are resisting?” I could instantly relate to this woman…brought into the organization to make change and then soundly rejected for doing what she’d been hired to do.

Maybe you’re one of them. You were sold on the promise, “We need some new blood, like you. Change agents who will shake things up and help us transition into the company we need to be.” Then, within a matter of months you were rejected and ostracized by the people you were supposed to be helping.

But I was just trying to help!?!

Yup.

I think of it like organ donation. It can be true that you are exactly what the organization needs to restore its health AND that the organization will reject you with every fibre of its being.

In the case of organ rejection, there are strong immunosuppressants that minimize the body’s attack. Although there’s no magic pill to cure the rejection you’re experiencing, there are some strategies to minimize it.

Consider the Source

First, think about the source of the animosity. Your presence could be threatening to those who were in the organization before you. After all, if you’ve been brought in to introduce change, doesn’t it imply that there was something broken that needs fixing?

And it’s not a far stretch from “something broken” to “someone.” [Of course, that’s not what it usually means. Change is not about fixing something broken but instead about keeping up with how the world is changing. But that’s not how it feels to the people on the receiving end.]

The reactions to change aren’t always as extreme as feeling broken. Perhaps your teammates are just frustrated at having to learn new things, which requires effort and slows them down. Maybe they are anxious at the possibility they won’t have the skills to be successful in the new model. Some of them could be jealous that you are now the favored one, getting attention and adulation from the boss. Suffice to say that not all of them will be thinking oh wow, I’m SO glad we have this savior to lead us…