Creating Space for Reactions before Responses

This week I was on the receiving end of some unexpected change at work and was reminded of the importance of creating space for people to react before they move to a more considered response to a change. 

Being a Change Lead, I love nothing more than a perfectly planned change which allows the opportunity to lead our people through the change journey, creating an awareness of the need for the change, create desire, and highlight the benefits. And I love planning the perfect timing to communicate to affected parties; to allow them time to move through the change curve and be on board with the change. 

Life, however, doesn’t always allow for such perfectly planned change! 

When time is not a luxury and quick business or life decisions need to be made for any manner of reasons, the change curve is sped up and it is only human to react more strongly when the velocity is faster than we are ready for. 

It is also important to note that reactions to change are stronger when there are other changes impacting a person. Change-overwhelm can impact anyone and this is especially important to remember in a work context. We will never know all of what our staff are dealing with outside of work and as such, must bring extra compassion to our roles as leaders of change. 

As leaders, when sharing the news of unexpected change, doing so in a psychological safe place, makes such a difference. My current team have been intentional about creating such a space and regularly check in with each other to ensure we are considering each other's wellbeing both on a work and personal level. 

When I had news of change shared with me this week, thanks to the psychological safety within our team, I felt comfortable requesting some time to share my immediate reactions before moving on to a considered response. I am aware that it is a gift that I have in a supportive team.  

But in the absence of the gift of time, what if all leaders intentionally offered the space for a reaction before we requested a response? There is a great responsibility for all leaders to create psychological safety within our teams and assuming this as a foundation, a verbal offering of a judgment-free space to react can be a game-changer. 

Have you tried offering space for reactions for any of your changes?  How did it go?