Learn a remarkable lesson from history

How you deal with resistance to change is not a new subject – whole bookshelves are filled with it.  But this little blog gives you a perspective that’s so fresh it takes its inspiration from China in 1810! 

 

Yes, while Napoleon was rampaging through Europe, on the other side of the world there was such an extraordinary military strategy that even now we can learn lessons about conflict resolution (as well as about victory against overwhelming odds).

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China in the early Nineteenth Century was just beginning to open its trade links with the rest of the world and the income they were generating was becoming a significant source of government revenue.

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But the coastal communities in China were poor – very poor.  And the government representatives were cruel, corrupt and hated by the population.

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Low-level piracy started out as a way of supplementing meagre wages and rotten food, but it began to get organised. In fact it became so organised that the pirate fleets outnumbered and outgunned the Chinese Navy many times over.  And the increase in piracy was creating conflict, trading losses, discontent and even sowing the seeds of revolution. 

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The pirates formed into a single organisation, and the Chinese Navy attacked.  And lost at every turn. 

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So they offered one of the most extraordinary deals in the history of conflict resolution.  From a remarkably weak position, they told the pirates to surrender their ships.  But it wasn’t backed up with a threat (they didn’t have the power for that); they offered a reward for giving up.

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No punishment, not even for the ringleaders who were fomenting revolution.  In fact all the pirates would be rewarded with land, and honour, and a real future as law-abiding citizens.

In short, an alternative future that was better than their past as poor peasants, and better than their present as itinerant pirates.

Slowly, some of the pirates took the chance and came in from the cold.  And they were treated with honour, given land, set up as respectable citizens and given the brighter future they’d been promised.

After a short time one of the pirate commanders surrendered.  Even as a leader of the revolt he was honoured and rewarded just like the rest.

And then an avalanche – everyone gave up their ships and received their reward.  Some got the land they desired, others joined the Navy and served in the very vessels they’d used as pirate ships.  Literally everyone was happy!  (*1)

So from a position where the Chinese government couldn’t possibly win, they achieved a total surrender with very little loss of life – and actually increased the size of their own fleet many times over.

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What do you want from your Change Programme?

But enough with the history, are you trying to change your business?  And does your business transformation programme suit everyone or are there rumblings of dissent, discontent and even rebellion?

And the next question is, do you want to shout-down your critics, punish or shame them into submission, or force the changes through regardless of their feelings?

Thought not.

Time to be brave and think outside the box, just like someone in China did in 1810 (*2).

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Understand, Forgive & Reward
 

How you overcome resistance to change will help shape your company’s culture for years to come.  Force it through against significant resistance and you’ll be considered authoritarian, driven by money not the welfare of your people.  And your company will suffer too - with less loyalty, more people leaving (or just leaving early) and fewer driven employees.

So address the resistance, and do so in a way that helps the complainers retain their dignity - coming out of the process feeling as though they’ve made a difference, not been pounded into submission.  

In short, reward them for their complaints.

Now I’m not talking about a bonus, or extra holidays, but about making them feel valued as individuals.  Here’s a process you could follow:

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