Why Imposed Change Exhausts Teams
And What to Do Instead
The new year just passed, and chances are you've already set your sights on something. Maybe it's your health. Maybe it's a skill you've been putting off. Maybe it's cutting back on something that isn't serving you anymore.
Whatever it is, there's one thing all these goals have in common: change.
From Point A to Point B. A different behavior. A new habit. A better outcome.
Here's what makes change interesting: you need it in some areas of your life, but not everywhere. And when you choose to change—when you're the one driving it—the process feels completely different than when change gets handed to you.
The Mental Load of Any Change
Think about your commute. The route you take to work or the grocery store is basically on autopilot. You don't think about turns, you don't stress about missing an exit. Your brain has freed up space for podcasts, phone calls, or just zoning out.
Now imagine your office moved across town. Suddenly you're paying attention to every street sign. The GPS voice is constant. You're second-guessing lane changes. It's exhausting—and all you're doing is driving somewhere new.
That exhaustion doesn't last forever. After a few weeks, the new route becomes automatic. But only after the repetition clicks in.
The same thing happens with any change. The bigger the shift, the longer it takes before autopilot kicks back in. And until it does, you're spending mental energy that used to be free.
When You Choose It vs. When It Chooses You
When you decide to change something about yourself, there's a built-in reward. You're chasing improvement, betterment, happiness. The effort feels worth it because you decided it was worth it.
But when change gets thrust upon you? That's a different story entirely.
You didn't ask for it. You didn't pick the timing. And now you have to burn all that mental fuel just to stay afloat—not to get ahead, just to keep up.
This is what so many teams are dealing with right now, especially around AI adoption.
The Change That's Just Getting Started
If you're leading a team—or you're on one—you've probably noticed that AI isn't a one-time implementation. It's not like switching to a new project management tool where everyone grumbles for two weeks and then adapts.
This is ongoing. The technology keeps evolving. The expectations keep shifting. And most teams are just beginning to figure out what this means for how they work.
Here's the problem: when you keep pushing change onto people without giving them any voice in how it happens, they eventually tire out just trying to tread water. They say the right things in meetings, but the actual adoption stalls. Or worse, they quietly resist while appearing to go along.
The One Thing That Actually Helps
People need some agency in how change happens.
Not total control—that's not realistic. But some say in how things unfold.
When teams get to voice their concerns, explore options together, and co-create how they'll move forward, something shifts. The change stops being something that's happening to them and becomes something they're navigating together.
This isn't about slowing things down or letting people opt out. It's about recognizing that sustainable change requires buy-in, and buy-in requires conversation.
Your team probably has opinions about the changes coming their way this year—ideas they're not saying out loud, concerns they're keeping to themselves, solutions they haven't been asked about.
What would happen if you created space for those conversations before resistance turns into quiet sabotage?
Looking to navigate major change with your team? Sometimes uncertainty needs more than communication - it needs structured dialogue where everyone can surface their real concerns. Let's talk about what that could look like for your team. We’re based in NYC!
