tragedy of the commons

Individuals tend to act rationally in pursuing personal goals without fully considering that they might be disadvantageous to the system at the collective level. For example, during a heat wave, those people with air conditioners run them at maximum. But that behavior, in turn, may cause the power grid to overload such that nobody's air conditioners work. In change management, this means that although organizational goals may be laudable and desirable, not everyone will subscribe to them and change how they work for the common good. Again, we must focus especially on “What's in it for me?” to help individuals personally to adopt and use the change.

Al Lee-Bourke

10 Tips From Psychology Every Change Leader Should Know by Al Lee-Bourke. Prosci Blog. Accessed on August 4, 2022. 

talking about myself

Change is incredibly personal. And, as we know, organizational change is the sum of individual changes and making personal decisions to engage, adopt and use a new way of working. Overlook this critical fact at your peril. As psychologist Carl Jung said, "Even when I'm dealing with empirical data, I'm necessarily talking about myself." For me, this means we must focus on the Desire element of the ADKAR Model in particular. “Why should I change? What's in it for me to change?” Really focus on that.

Al Lee-Bourke

10 Tips From Psychology Every Change Leader Should Know by Al Lee-Bourke. Prosci Blog. Accessed on August 4, 2022.