Humans Really Don't Like Change

But Change Is Where Leaders Earn their Paychecks

I used to love the end of August. You could feel the onset of Fall and the forthcoming milestones on the calendar: back-to-school, Halloween, American Thanksgiving, the December Holidays, and family time. So many wonderful moments and memories from the past, and new ones waiting to be created.

My signal of this approaching annual transition was not found in the changing colors of the leaves or the cooling of the evenings, but rather in the arrival of different sports seasons and events.

Oh, yes — the best sports come back in the Fall. Hockey. Premier League Football. The NFL (American Football). The World Series. Like long-lost friends, the marking of time was heralded by the return of so many familiar pastimes.

And best of all, College Football was in the air.

Marching bands. 18-22 year-olds playing sports with unadulterated emotion and joy. Lee Corso and his headgear picks. College GameDay on ESPN. Fans going crazy in a fun and usually innocent celebration of their tribes.

The most wonderful time of the year.

Until This Year

Pac-12 football meant something in our family. My parents went to UCLA. I went to Cal and Stanford. Two of our children went to the University of Oregon and the University of Arizona. Intergenerational taunting and harassment were the love language of our family. For much of the country a wonderful regional sports system existed for decades based on individuals’ memories of growing up and attending college — and the sports events that brought joy, heartbreak, and a wonderful consistency marking the passing of time.

But when UCLA and USC left the Pac-12 conference on the United States’ West Coast for the Big Ten conference in the country’s Midwest it all collapsed. The Pac-12 imploded, and the histories, traditions, and rivalries disappeared in a moment.

Get With It

I am many things, but naive is not one of them.

Many would say that big-time money shaped college athletics well before these two schools chose to change the leagues in which they compete. Some would say that major college athletics (especially men’s college football and basketball) were already professional leagues with the faux veneer of being played by “student-athletes.” The UCLA Bruins and USC Trojans linking up with teams from the Midwest and East Coast simply solidified what already existed financially.

But in the moment they bolted the band-aid was ripped off the patient and there was no longer any pretending. Today we now have four professional college football leagues that are controlled and driven by television money from ESPN and Fox, and athletes increasingly leave their schools with high frequency for larger paying NIL contracts from other universities and “NIL Collectives.”

There is no consistency or loyalty from either the teams or the players. The tribes and histories are no more.

Whether one likes this or doesn’t like this, it doesn’t matter.

It just is.

No traditions.

No future.

And for me, no interest.

Adrift at Sea

I had no say in this change. No one called to ask my opinion. I wasn’t given a vote.

When I teach in MBA and Executive Education programs and when I consult for companies, I will frequently assert that, “Humans hate change.” It is conventional wisdom to state that people should “embrace change” and that “change is good.”

Sometimes.

Change can be good. Or bad.

But regardless, change just is.

What may be the hardest thing about change is when it is thrust upon us and we have no control or say in the change — which is the case for most things in life. The changing of the seasons. Changes in our age. Unexpected changes to our health.

As leaders, one of our key goals is to help our organizations and people navigate through change. Leaders often need to drive change in their companies to remain competitive. And it is way more fun when we are the ones inflicting change upon others than the other way around.

In some ways, leadership shines most when we guide our people through change whether it is wanted or unwanted. Being aware of how difficult it is for our teammates to make sense and find stability in times of uncertainty is where leaders profoundly earn their paychecks.

It is in these moments of change when leaders must both recognize patterns and take actions for their colleagues and organizations, and it is where great leaders are separated from the average.

One of my most treasured mentors, Robert Burgelman, used to ask our classes, “Do you like gravity?” Some students would say, “Yes” while others responded, “No.” Robert would then gently remind them,

“Well, however you feel about gravity, gravity doesn’t care.”

We can intellectually understand that change is constant — and that nothing lasts forever — not people, not plants, not animals, and certainly not organizations. I would posit that the role of a leader is to help smooth these times of change so that the company’s tasks can be achieved and that organizations can continue to exist.

This is where great leaders shine.

Today’s leaders must be increasingly focused on helping our people understand and make sense of the chaos of the modern world, and to help our colleagues do their best work in a time of increasingly rapid upheaval that makes humans feel untethered and unmoored.

And to accept the inevitability of this constant change.

You’ll Never Walk Alone

When our family moved back to Northern California in 2012 I was a desperate Dad. My three teenage children were upset by the move, and I hoped I could bribe them and make the transition easier by buying every television movie channel that was available. As part of the cable bundle I purchased, the Fox Soccer television channel was included.

One day I stumbled upon “Being: Liverpool,” a behind-the-scenes show about Liverpool FC. I was part of the first generation of youth who played soccer in the United States from the time I was five years old. I played up until university, and all three of our children played for many years. I never had a team to root for because, well, the MLS league here is kind of “meh,” to be honest.

The show about Liverpool was really well done. The viewer got to know the people on the team, see the behind-the-scenes dynamics of the players, and learn about the history of the club.

The organization has an amazing legacy of good times and tragedy. Before every match the supporters loudly sing the greatest anthem in sports, “You’ll Never Walk Alone.”

What a wonderful sentiment of belonging and tribe.

Ok, I thought. This will be my team. It just felt right.

I’ve since followed the club for the last 12 years enjoying the rebirth of a storied organization.

Last October I went to my first game at Anfield. I have to be honest: it was better than the days our children were born.

I know. I said that out loud. I’m a horrible person. But I’m at peace with that. And the day really was that incredible.

Fox Soccer is now gone and no longer exists. Brendan Rodgers, the Liverpool manager in the show, is currently at Celtic. Our home no longer has children who live with us — they’ve all grown up and moved out on their own. We don’t even have a television bundle anymore — we stream everything.

But last Saturday I watched Liverpool’s new manager, Arne Slot, win his first game on the team’s home pitch while I worked out and viewed the game on Peacock.

So many changes.

And all is right in the world.