So, I am not a Star Trek fan.

In fact, as a kid growing up in an era with one TV in the house that only had a few channels, whatever my parents wanted to watch is what we watched. As an only child, if I didn’t like it, I could go play in my room by myself or just deal with it to not be alone.

Memories of Star Trek

My dad really liked Star Trek. Whenever my mom was busy, and it was on, he would watch it. I couldn’t understand why he liked it. So, I would play in the living room, but usually under a blanket as if that would block out the dumb show.

One thing I do remember from years and years of Star Trek shows – from that era and more recent – was the line: "Resistance Is Futile!"

An alien race – the Borg – were on a mission to take over all the other regions of the universe. They were pretty badass, and they did not accept resistance. Anyone who resisted would be crushed (well…really, anyone was to be crushed, but resistance was pointless).

Ever have any resistant people on your sales team? Sorry – dumb question…of course you do. The only real question is how many of them resist the change you need to roll out?

Why Salespeople Resist Change

So why do they resist?

If their job is to sell and make money, and your goal is to ensure they succeed, wouldn’t that mean they would take whatever you suggest and/or require and just try it out to find a way to make it work?

A (Sales) + B (Money) = C (Winning)

Is it because salespeople don’t always like math – other than calculating commissions? Is that why they don’t understand the formula of business?

The reason they resist is they are human. And a special form of human that feels their success in sales comes from talking to people and doing things the way they have always done it.

Comfort Zones and Resistance

Humans don’t like change. I have written about that a lot in the past. Humans love their comfort zone. The known is always better than the unknown.

Especially if the known is making them enough money, or their lifestyle doesn’t require them to make more money (life partner makes good money, they live at home, they have really low expenses, etc.), or they aren’t driven by money.

Whatever they have done up to this point has gotten them to this point where they have a general idea of the effort required to earn the money they feel entitled to. Why fix something that isn’t broken?

This week’s selling effectiveness blog was about “my way works well enough” as a mindset to resist change initiatives.

Action Steps for Leaders

First – Hire better, more open-minded people that are a fit for your culture.

Second – Support the open-minded members of the team in growing, through coaching, training, and the implementation of new, best practices.

Third – Once the open-minded group of your team is out-performing the closed-minded, change-resistant contingent, ensure that the change-resistant group understands that they evolve and grow, or that the company is not the right place for them.

That’s really it. I reference James Collins frequently for a reason (check out Good To Great) – it’s timelessly true.

Get the right people on the bus. Get the wrong people off the bus. With the right people on the bus, and in the right seats, drive that bus to your destination (mission and vision).

Conclusion

Don’t make it overly complicated. Don’t try and change change-resistant people. Don’t try to fight against them. That is like trying to push a wet rope. You won’t win at getting it where you wish it would go. Ensure they all know that resistance is futile. That you expect adaptability and adherence. Anything other than that will not be tolerated.