Myths and Patterns of Organisational Change
summary
Claim: rational argument alone rarely changes organizations, so use social psychology, influence research and repeated small trials to shift behavior. Concrete tools include recruiting an evangelist, running many tiny experiments that follow the cold learning cycle, and measuring adoption curves (about 2.5% innovators and 13.5% early adopters). Simple tactics work: feed people or bring cookies to improve buy‑in, ask for help to create ownership, listen to skeptics to learn, and treat gratitude as a measurable lever for sustaining change.
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chapters (8)
- 0:00Intro
- 2:39Why patterns? Giving a name to a common problem with a known solution means we can have a conversation about the problems and solutions, using the names of the patterns.
- 9:02Smart people are rational.
- 14:54Keep these patterns with you Take on a role: Evangelist (not a fanatic) Run lots of small experiments. Iterate: Just Do It Time for Reflection Small Successes Baby Steps
- 20:50Good always triumphs over evil. (Just World Fallacy, one of our many cognitive biases.)
- 38:50Skeptics, cynics, resistors-THOSE people must be BAD or STUPID or BOTH! Ignore them!
- 40:14Champion Skeptic: Encourage a resistor to play the important role of "Devil's Advocate." Treat this person as a valued partner in the change effort.
- 42:16You're a smart person, so you don't need help from others. After all, it's YOUR idea!
