Why our brain does not like change

…and how to help make change more manageable! By Training Director Nicole Utzinger

At the start of a new year, many of us tend to wonder what life might have in store for us over the next 12 months, and also reflect on the recent past. Sometimes with confidence, sometimes with a slight worry.

Just remember how the last three years have impacted all of our lives. All the changes we had to deal with.

"The only constant in life is change”, they say. So why do we sometimes invite and at other times severely struggle with, even resist change?

The answer lies in understanding what is happening in our brain, when we are faced with change.

Our brain is all about self-preservation. It is innately wired to protect us. So, while over thousands of years, our brain has learned to evolve and adapt, when somebody else decides that we have to change, things can get tricky.

The brain minimizes threats and maximizes rewards. As soon as we sense a threat, our brain activates survival mode, whether this is a real or simply a perceived or potential danger. The consequence: Our brain goes into overdrive – hence the well-used term “fight-or-flight”!

So, whenever we or people around us struggle with change, it is not because we decide to be difficult or cause problems. The truth is, that we are operating from a state of shock, self-preservation, and the classic “fight-or-flight” response.

Let’s take a closer look at the cause of it all

Two parts of our brain are key when it comes to interacting with others and our surroundings, the limbic system and frontal lobe. The limbic system (or reptile brain) primarily controls our emotions and motivations, particularly those that relate to survival such as fear,  anger and impulse, and is highly connected to our nervous systems.  One key part of the limbic system is the amygdala, an almond-shaped structure, whose main function is emotional response and is triggered whenever we feel afraid, anxious, vulnerable, uncertain, criticised, treated unfairly, and /or under threat – real or just imagined.

As soon as the amygdala gets stimulated, it takes over. The so-called “amygdala hijack” shuts down other parts of the brain so that we mostly react on impulse and are driven by self-preservation. We are no longer able to think logically, process information, use common sense, or put things into perspective.

In contrast, the frontal lobe is located behind the forehead, at the front of the brain. Its main functions are typically associated with ‘higher’ cognitive functions, including decision-making, problem-solving, logical thinking, thought and attention. We can operate from the frontal lobe whenever we feel safe, recognised, appreciated, and experience a sense of certainty and fairness. Only then, can we process and digest information, i.e. a change initiate in our organisation.

In a nutshell:  When the amygdala and the limbic part of our brain are in active fight-or flight mode, our logic (our frontal lobe) shuts down completely.

How can we help ourselves and others switch from the limbic to the frontal lobe?

First of all, understanding our brain and that our initial reaction to change is natural (remember self-preservation) and shared by all of us, will already lower stress levels.

Especially when we want to launch and communicate change, sharing this insight with everybody who will be affected is crucial.

Our brains need to have all the necessary information to predict the future and make sense of the world. Any news, even bad news, is perceived  better than a breakdown in communication with no news at all.

Being kept in the dark and not knowing will trigger the brain to start running its predictive script by filling the gaps of missing information and creating suitable (often worst-case) interpretations of the situation. And the limbic system will go into overdrive! Here’s a few tips:

·  Always communicate.

·  Prevent giving our brains a shock! Avoid surprise. Avoid uncertainty.

·  Break the change and communication of the change down into manageable chunks the brain can easily understand and process.

·  Don’t sugar-coat the truth. Transparency is vital. Communicate the why, the how, and the when, while also sharing what will remain the same.

·  Make it human. People connect with people and our brain needs to receive important news from a human being, i.e., CEO, team leader, somebody we hopefully trust.

·  Give people a voice and a chance to get involved. Take away anxiety that is caused by not giving people the opportunity to voice concerns. Becoming part of the change and being listened to will keep the brain calm and the frontal lobe operating.

I discuss this in far greater detail in the workshops I deliver for the IoIC. Change Communications  on 1st and Influence & Impact on 2nd Feb.