What Resistance Can Teach A Leader

What A Resistant Employee Can Teach You About Leadership

The new scheduling system was supposed to solve everything.

After months of double-bookings, missed appointments, and frustrated customers, the solution seemed obvious. The software was intuitive, the training was thorough, and the benefits were clear.

Three weeks later, chaos had gotten worse.

Appointments were getting lost between systems. Half the team was still using the old paper calendar "as backup." The newest employees had adapted quickly, but the long-time staff - the ones who knew every customer by name - were quietly holding back.

"It's too complicated," they said. "The old way worked fine."

What they really meant was something deeper: This feels threatening, and we don't trust that it will actually make things better.

Why Your Best People Push Back Hardest

When you roll out an improvement, the real challenge often comes not from new hires but from your most experienced team members.

They're loyal, knowledgeable, and carry strong relationships with customers. But they're also most attached to "how we've always done it." Change can feel like criticism of everything they've built.

If you want your business to grow, you have to learn from those moments of resistance instead of bulldozing past them.

The Psychology Behind Pushback

McKinsey research shows that only 34% of change initiatives fully achieve their goals. Gallup data reveals employee engagement typically drops by 20% during poorly managed transitions.

Resistance is rarely laziness or defiance. It's fear.

People worry about losing control, failing at something new, or wasting energy on another idea that will fizzle out like the last one.

As John Kotter said in Leading Change: "People don't resist change. They resist being changed."

Understanding this psychology helps you respond with empathy instead of frustration - and turn an obstacle into an opportunity to strengthen your team.

What Resistance Actually Teaches You

Connection: Fear Points to Relationships

When people push back, listen instead of doubling down. Give employees space to share concerns and frustrations.

That doesn't mean abandoning the change. It means showing them that their perspective matters more than simply checking boxes.

This builds psychological safety and trust that pays off long after the current change is implemented.

Clarity: Pushback Reveals Where Expectations Are Fuzzy

Often, resistance signals that you haven't fully explained why the change is happening, how it benefits the team, or what success looks like.

Use resistance as feedback: What's still unclear? What feels risky to them?

When you clarify the "why," you reduce uncertainty and increase buy-in.

Culture: Your Response Sets the Tone

How you handle resistance teaches your team what kind of culture you're building.

Do you value input and collaboration, or just compliance? When employees see that you handle pushback with fairness, they're more likely to commit to future initiatives instead of hiding their doubts.

The Many Faces of Quiet Resistance

Resistance isn't always loud or obvious. More often, it's subtle:

Passive compliance - agreeing in meetings but making no real changes. Active skepticism - questioning every detail or muttering "we've tried this before." Selective implementation - following only the parts they agree with. Delay tactics - waiting to see if the change will fade away. Underground opposition - eye rolls and side comments that influence others.

Instead of treating these behaviors as character flaws, treat them as signals. They reveal where you need to slow down, explain more, and involve people in shaping the process.

Turning Resistance Into Strength

Handled well, resistance makes your business better:

It surfaces weak points in your communication before customers feel the impact. It gives you insight into your team's fears and values. It forces you to design better processes instead of rushing to "just get it done."

Some of your best culture champions might start as your most vocal skeptics. When they see their concerns are heard and addressed, they become your most credible advocates for change.

This Week's Reflection

If your team is resisting a new initiative right now, ask yourself:

Have I made the "why" crystal clear? Have I created space to hear their fears without judgment? Have I connected this change to their success, not just the company's success?

Your most resistant employees may be your greatest teachers. They're holding up a mirror to your leadership.

When you respond with connection, clarity, and genuine care for their concerns, you strengthen the foundation of your entire team.

Talk soon,

Jim

P.S. The leaders who learn from resistance instead of fighting it build cultures where people feel safe to speak up. That's worth way more than compliance.

Jim Heinz is the founder of Jim Heinz Consulting and author of The Teambuilding Blueprint. He spent three decades in the medical industry dealing with the same team challenges you're facing right now: employees who don't follow through, unclear expectations, and the constant stress of being responsible for everything. He learned how to build teams that perform without micromanagement and cultures that solve problems instead of creating them. His insights come from experience, not theory.