Politics in Germany is currently just as difficult as elsewhere. But one slogan for the upcoming European elections has caught my attention:
“I’ll be annoying until something changes.”
Is that the case, I ask myself, does change really work in such a way that we only have to nag until something changes? Like a child whining at the supermarket checkout until it gets its way? I am skeptical. As a rule, change is directed against our habits, beliefs or what the herd around us believes and does. For this reason, change must be strong enough to overcome them all.
Let’s take a closer look at the most common approaches and their characteristics:
- to hear or see
It doesn’t matter whether someone argues, appeals to us, or whether we see, hear or read something. As pure recipients of information, we even find it difficult to remember after a short time. We are simply confronted with too many thoughts these days. The brain may condense what we hear or see into a single remembered thought. That’s it. And as soon as we compare our very familiar reality with the thought we heard for the first time, it’s “game”, “set”, “match”, and “familiar” wins against “new”. A clear case of home advantage.
- to repeat
The effect of affirmations is based on the fact that we hear the same lines or see the same images again and again. This certainly leads to a stronger anchoring in the subconscious, but it works just as well as it did when we heard “sit up straight”, “eat slowly” or “put your elbow down” over and over again when we were children. The above quote from Ms. Strack-Zimmermann works the same way. It’s a classic attrition strategy until the other person can’t take it any more or gives in for fear of punishment. It works somehow, but it doesn’t bring about lasting change as long as there is a lack of inner conviction.
- to empathize
When people with whom we are emotionally connected describe in vivid language the danger they were in under certain conditions, we can immediately change our behavior based on their words alone and avoid similar situations in future. This indicates that it is important whether we perceive what we hear as relevant and whether we are emotionally affected.
- to experience
When we experience something with all our senses that is taking place in reality, we are certainly the least able to look away or immediately deny the relevance of what is new. We experience absolutely comparable situations to our familiar reality, or at least analogies that lead to different results thanks to different rules. With the help of our experience, we can assess what we have witnessed, experience it as relevant and are also emotionally involved as soon as we discover tangible advantages or disadvantages.
- to execute
The step up from passive experience is the active implementation of a changed procedure. This requires some persuasion, but as soon as we start to experiment and consciously and thoughtfully execute our activities differently, we have the chance to achieve better results and thus create relevant successes with emotional potential. Praise and recognition from outside can further strengthen the emotional impact.
- to force
Nowadays, change is increasingly forced with power. Sensors, software automation or acknowledgement at the touch of a button ensure that actions can only be carried out in a single desired order and manner. For better or worse, we have to comply if we want to achieve the desired result. And once we have accepted this, habit soon heals all wounds.
In a comparison of common approaches, the solutions that promise the most effective change success are those in which those involved perceive the activities as relevant and feel emotionally engaged by tangible results. Therefore, it has proven useful to actively add these ingredients to all change initiatives in order to improve the chances of success.
